They packed up their old van in the late afternoon, careful not to forget anything.

Coolers. Folding chairs. Smoked turkey and Mississippi mud cake and broccoli salad.

"It's going to be emotional," he said.

"I try not to think about it," she said.

And so Edgar and Jessie Harrell worked and chatted and pretended they were packing up for just another college football game.

Except it's not just another college football game, of course. It's their son's last one.

Justin Harrell will suit up to play defensive tackle for Tennessee tonight. Next week, he'll have surgery on the ruptured biceps tendon that was supposed to have ended his season already.

And if you needed a reason to feel good about college football after all the recent dirt, he'll be wearing No. 92 for the Vols as they take on Florida.

"He just wanted to play one more game," said Edgar Harrell.

Even though there was nothing in it for him?

"He can help his teammates," said Edgar.

Oh.

Hadn't thought of that one.

But then, it doesn't come up much, not in the look-at-me, when-can-I-turn-pro world of college football.

Harrell could have turned pro after last season, by the way. He would likely have been taken on the first day of the draft.

"He never thought about it," said Edgar Harrell. "Justin went to Tennessee to get an education. Football was the means by which he was going to accomplish that."

Friends told Harrell he was making a mistake. He had a long history of injuries, after all. A broken leg. A broken ankle. A messed-up wrist. You name it.

"He didn't pay any attention," Edgar Harrell said. "He just said, 'That's football.' "

And so it was that Harrell ruptured a biceps tendon in the third quarter of last week's game against Air Force. The news reports all said the same thing: Harrell's career at Tennessee was over.

You think it's possible the guy didn't read them?

"He called me on Tuesday," said Edgar Harrell. "He said, 'What do you think about me playing Saturday?' "

Edgar thought what any father would think: What, are you nutso?

Then the son explained the situation. True enough, he'd have to have surgery in the next week or so. But playing against Florida wouldn't put him at risk of further injury.

"We left it that he was going to try some tackling drills and see how it went," said Edgar Harrell. "Thursday, he called me and said 'It's a go.' It didn't surprise me at all, it's typical Justin."

Or maybe typical Harrell, starting with the father, who has spent 32 years working for Goodyear. In those 32 years, he has taken three sick days.

"I don't miss work," he said.

Ever?

"I've missed it for funeral leave," he said. "But for illness or injury, no. I think it's my responsibility to be there."

Which explains a lot, doesn't it? About father and son and tonight's remarkable proceedings.

Harrell is grateful to have one last chance to play at Neyland. He's grateful to have one more chance to look up at the roaring walls of orange.

More than any of that, though, he's grateful to have one last chance to feel like he's part of something bigger than himself.

"That's what motivates him," said Edgar Harrell. "He wants to be there for his teammates."

And for Inky Johnson, too, the cornerback who wrecked his shoulder during the Air Force game. Unlike Harrell, Johnson doesn't have a final shot. He may never play again.

"You never know when you're going to have your final game," said Jessie Harrell. "Except, I guess, Justin does."

So at roughly 8 p.m., Harrell will run out onto the field for his final coin flip. He's a team captain. Of course he is.

Because his very presence dignifies the game, and reminds us that it's not all about getting rich or getting famous.

It's about teammates, too, and accountability. It's about this one game, and this one night, and this one opportunity.

"Everybody doesn't get a chance like this," said Edgar Harrell.

Everybody doesn't have the passion to take it.