Reeder was described as the goal-shooting hero for UT, according to the Journal & Tribune.
However, Reeder left as soon as UT celebrated i
first victory over Kentucky. A few days after those games, he departed from school, and the Vols lost their next two games in Lexington to the UK.Rather, Reeder was a member of the Knoxville Tigers, a nearby club team that went to tournaments in Atlanta, Chattanooga, Asheville, and other southern cities.That was typical back then. Although it was a recreational activity,
athletes’ allegiance to their college teams wasn’t as strong.
Moreover, Reeder spent his whole playing career playing for several teams at once.Still, the News Sentinel stated that Reeder’s absence crippled the Vols.Reeder was regarded as one of the top basketball players in the South. He was also enticed to play one season of football at the University of Delaware in 1916, where he was named an All-Eastern.
However, it fit awkwardly.Reeder sent a letter to the Journal & Tribune expressing his dissatisfaction with the number of passes and dribbles made by Eastern teams. It wasn’t the cooperative game he was used to playing in the South.He even participated in a couple of games for a semi-pro team out of Delaware that did not have a backboard behind the hoop.
Though it brought back memories of that basket he had seen on the jail bars as a child, the strangeness of it all made him want to leave.Surprisingly, UT upset Kentucky and finished 12-0 while Reeder was abroad. Fans, meanwhile, were still pining for the hometown hero to wear orange and white.
Not long later, Reeder embarked on the first of his two comeback tours.This was only done in Tennessee by Ernie and Bernie.UT was getting ready to travel to Kentucky on its first road trip of the 1917 campaign.
It did, however, play a few warm-up games at home first.It appeared as though Reeder had lost his touch in his first game back. However, he heated up in a 36-11 victory over Tusculum after a deflated basketball was restored.
However, Maryville saw his reappearance and encircled Reeder, leaving his comrades vulnerable. The Vols lost a surprising 23–15 game that cast doubt on the team’s season because they were unable to make any shots.If the Vols don’t improve their poor goal shooting, they’ll have a terrible season, according to the News Sentinel. The only individual who is dependable is Lum Reeder.But the Maryville game taught the Vols a valuable lesson. In order to increase offense, first-year coach John Bender changed up the starting lineup.Reeder was muzzled by the UK, but the Vols made up for it with open shots.
In Lexington, UT defeated the UK twice in a row, 23-20 and 22-19. Then, in two thrilling games in Knoxville—a 27-26 thriller and a 30-10 thumping—the Vols defeated the Wildcats. In the second game, Reeder took the lead with 16 points as the UK was unable to stop the UT shooter.
In the end, Tennessee defeated Kentucky five times in a row during that time. together until Ernie Grunfeld and Bernard King teamed up to win five straight in the 1970s, it was the Vols’ longest winning streak in the rivalry.How the Great War removed Reeder from the Vols lineupWhen the United States entered World War I, Reeder was taken away from the Vols once more.When German submarines
threatened to sink ten American ships off the coast of North Carolina, he volunteered in the Navy and commanded a patrol boat to guard the Gulf of Mexico.However, Reeder kept his skills sharp by playing basketball for the Navy in New Orleans, preparing him for a second trip back to UT.In 1917–18, the Vols were defeated by the UK in all four of their games played without Reeder. But in 1919, having been honorably release
d, he resumed his duties.UT ended its losing streak with a 40–22 victory over the UK; however, Reeder was unable to play because of sickness. But by the end of the decade, the Vols had leveled the competition, with Reeder typically serving as the X-factor.
How is Lum Reeder doing?The Reeder family remained a major force in Knoxville and the Vols organization.
At UT, Lum’s two brothers participated in a variety of sports, including basketball. At Knoxville High School, their sister was a standout basketball player. And for decades, a number of cousins were starters on the UT and high school teams.Lum married Kathleen Fleming, who had the distinguished social title of First Lady of Knoxville, in 1951.
Fleming and Robert, their two sons, were on the UT track team. Fleming Reeder rose to prominence as a filmmaker, participating in the production of movies about Oak Ridge National Laboratory and taking home a prize from the Cannes Film Festival.Lum continued to be a mainstay on the Knoxville floor after graduating from UT. Up until the 1930s, he participated in independent league basketball.
In addition to having a prosperous real estate and insurance career, he was a Knox County trustee in the 1940s.Lum maintained strong links to the Navy. He served as the civilian head of the Navy Board of East Tennessee.
essee during World War II. Later on, he held the positions of president of the Knoxville Navy Club and director of the Naval Reserve Unit.July 1981, at the age of eighty-four.Prior to his death, Lum was blind for seven years.
But in December 1973, at a Vols basketball game, he was honored among the other members of the 1917 squad before he lost his sight.The first of their exploits to be recognized was their 4-0 record against Kentucky that season.
The final home game between Tennessee and Kentucky that Lum attended was one year prior to his passing.The overwhelming favorite was the No. 2 Wildcats. But before the final buzzer, Howard Wood sank the game-winning shot from the baseline to shock Kentucky, and the undermanned, underdog Vols pulled off an upset, 49-47
