*Niche Topic: 2001 SEC Title Game For Nostalgic Fans Only

#51
#51
Titans4Vols said:
The semi-pro team that was the 2001 Miami Hurricanes would have kicked our teeth in, so the gut punch was inevitable.

If you want to take anything good from it, at least it allowed the team to end the year with a W over Michigan.

I also don't view this as the downfall of the Fulmer era. That's 2005. Losing to LSU sucked, but that Tennessee team still played like a top 5-6 team all year long. The 05 Vols were one of the most talented in the country and should have done great things. Oh well, I suppose.
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not true...Tennessee could've beaten Miami
 
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#52
#52
Rickyvol77 said:
The players weren't out partying

The game came down to two things, we fumbled two key fumbles by Stephens and Stallworth and our defensive calls from Chavis refused to account for Mauck running draws, that literally was it..
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Right before half remember all of those missed td passes? All three throws were there. We just did not click that night. Totally altered our trajectory as a program.
 
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#53
#53
Titans4Vols said:
The semi-pro team that was the 2001 Miami Hurricanes would have kicked our teeth in, so the gut punch was inevitable.

If you want to take anything good from it, at least it allowed the team to end the year with a W over Michigan.

I also don't view this as the downfall of the Fulmer era. That's 2005. Losing to LSU sucked, but that Tennessee team still played like a top 5-6 team all year long. The 05 Vols were one of the most talented in the country and should have done great things. Oh well, I suppose.
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2008 was the final downfall of Fulmer era too...2006 and 2007 werent terrible seasons...they had the NC Gators beat and the refs kept them in the game and then it collapsed They had the NC Tigers beat in 2007 and just couldn't get it done, but its not like they laid down
 
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#55
#55
Well, here's my assessment of the 2001 game. We got cocky and complacent. A week after we defeated Florida at "The Swamp", we flew into Atlanta with players carrying roses and a couple of them with a rose in their mouths. We acted like we had a spot for the National Championship in the bag. No doubt that Saban used that to fire up his players.

During the game, we were doing well. Especially on defense. LSU QB Rohan Davey was a typical pro-style QB type that our defense prepared for. Then Davey got hurt. We were leading 17-7 at the half. During the half, Saban made adjustments. We didn't. When LSU came out in the second half, Saban put in Matt Mauck. Mauck was an Option style running QB we did NOT prepare for. And it seemed like that Chavis' defenses could never defend against an Option style attack.

The Tigers kept running Option plays, especially the QB run up the middle. Our defense kept allowing Mauck to do that on us quite a bit in the second half. Their defense also made adjustments and stifled us where we couldn't run the ball and had to rely on Clausen to throw on them. And we couldn't hit anybody. Fulmer got outcoached by Saban and exposed.

I talked to a buddy of mine who I used to work with about that game who was also a UT fan. 11 years ago, we were riding home from a baseball game we attended, and we discussed UT football. The 2001 SEC Championship game came up, and I said that there was no reason we should have lost that game. We were the better team and more talented team. We should have prepared for them more.

My buddy told me that he wasn't surprised at all. He knew we'd lose that game. I asked how he figured that. He told me that we beat Saban and LSU at Knoxville earlier that season. He knew that Saban would have his team more prepared for the SEC Championship game. Plus, Saban never loses to the same team twice during a season.

He made valid points. I now feel like we'd been better off if Auburn beat LSU during the season. That would've got them a spot in the SEC Championship. I feel like that we'd probably would've beaten them and gone on to the National Championship. Would we have won it? Hard to say. Miami was a damn good team that year and they stomped a mudhole in the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Rose Bowl to win the Title. It's possible that is what they may have done to us as well. Who knows?
 
#58
#58
sambronkowitz said:
Well, here's my assessment of the 2001 game. We got cocky and complacent. A week after we defeated Florida at "The Swamp", we flew into Atlanta with players carrying roses and a couple of them with a rose in their mouths. We acted like we had a spot for the National Championship in the bag. No doubt that Saban used that to fire up his players.

During the game, we were doing well. Especially on defense. LSU QB Rohan Davey was a typical pro-style QB type that our defense prepared for. Then Davey got hurt. We were leading 17-7 at the half. During the half, Saban made adjustments. We didn't. When LSU came out in the second half, Saban put in Matt Mauck. Mauck was an Option style running QB we did NOT prepare for. And it seemed like that Chavis' defenses could never defend against an Option style attack.

The Tigers kept running Option plays, especially the QB run up the middle. Our defense kept allowing Mauck to do that on us quite a bit in the second half. Their defense also made adjustments and stifled us where we couldn't run the ball and had to rely on Clausen to throw on them. And we couldn't hit anybody. Fulmer got outcoached by Saban and exposed.

I talked to a buddy of mine who I used to work with about that game who was also a UT fan. 11 years ago, we were riding home from a baseball game we attended, and we discussed UT football. The 2001 SEC Championship game came up, and I said that there was no reason we should have lost that game. We were the better team and more talented team. We should have prepared for them more.

My buddy told me that he wasn't surprised at all. He knew we'd lose that game. I asked how he figured that. He told me that we beat Saban and LSU at Knoxville earlier that season. He knew that Saban would have his team more prepared for the SEC Championship game. Plus, Saban never loses to the same team twice during a season.

He made valid points. I now feel like we'd been better off if Auburn beat LSU during the season. That would've got them a spot in the SEC Championship. I feel like that we'd probably would've beaten them and gone on to the National Championship. Would we have won it? Hard to say. Miami was a damn good team that year and they stomped a mudhole in the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Rose Bowl to win the Title. It's possible that is what they may have done to us as well. Who knows?
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Saban didn't "put in" Mauck.. we injured Davey and forced him to...he never would've played Mauck otherwise...once he saw Chavis wasn't going to adjust to the QB draw, he kept going at it.

and other than that game, the 2011 game vs LSU and one game a few years ago against UGA, Saban never played the same time twice in a season, so doubt your buddy knew anything about it.
 
#60
#60
vol94 said:
I was at the game in Atlanta thinking there was no way we’d lose the game, esp at the half. LSU fans were congratulating me.

My wife and I were a young 30yrs old and had tickets lined for the natty vs Miami in rose bowl.

Miami was an incredible team but TN making the title game twice in 4 yrs would have brought our program to the next level.

Fulmer was mentioned by the media as a possible candidate for the Panthers NFL job. Then the 2nd half occurred and the decline began.
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That is true. Fulmer was looked at as a candidate for the Carolina Panthers. I'd say that after the 2001 SEC Title game, Panthers Owner Jerry Richardson told his staff to cross Fulmer off his hiring list.
 
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#61
#61
Rickyvol77 said:
Saban didn't "put in" Mauck.. we injured Davey and forced him to...he never would've played Mauck otherwise...once he saw Chavis wasn't going to adjust to the QB draw, he kept going at it.

and other than that game, the 2011 game vs LSU and one game a few years ago against UGA, Saban never played the same time twice in a season, so doubt your buddy knew anything about it.
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Okay, I should have clarified better. Saban put in Mauck to replace an injured Davey after we took him out. And yes, Saban kept going at us with the QB Draw because we were not able to adjust to it. But Saban did make adjustments for the second half and Fulmer decided let's not change a thing, stick to the same ol' game plan.
 
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#62
#62
robcovol said:
I often wonder how much beating Florida the week before affected Tennessee against LSU.
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I remember talking to my older brother and his brother-in-law about the loss later on after the game ended. That is what my older brother thought. He said that we gave it our all against Florida, and when we got to the SEC Championship, we just ran out of gas.
 
#65
#65
UTwild82 said:
The only thing that has taken a little bit of the sting off that game was now we know Saban was the best to ever do it. Plus I doubt we would have beaten Miami. We would have played them better than Nebraska did, though.

I agree, Fulmer never felt the same after that game. SEC got better. His recruiting slid. I hate Kiffin did what he did to put us in the dark ages, but moving on from PF was the right move. This has been argued many times on here and will be again, but the game had passed him by. I'll always be thankful for everything he did here as a player and coach though.

Im just thankful we have a coach that has gotten us much closer to where we belong. There will be ups and downs, but I forgot how good it feels to be part of a program that matters. And we certainly matter now.

And thank you for sharing a part of your personal story. That's not always easy to do.
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Did you watch the Kiffin doc on ESPN that came out this week. I know people will likely cast doubt on it, but his side of the USC hiring process was that he was assured no major penalties would be coming from the NCAA. I believe he likely would have stayed if it was known the severity of the penalties USC was going to get. Who knows how that would have turned out. We would have avoided Dooley and Butch that is for sure.
 
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#66
#66
PEPPERJAX said:
Rohan Davey was knocked out of the game and Labrandon Toefield iirc.
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Yes we knocked out both starting QB and RB and their backups kicked our azz. In reality the loss is on my buddy and I still remind him. We had 2nd row 50 yard line and all he wanted to do was let everyone know pre-game, I told him it was bad ju-ju.
 
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#67
#67
Rickyvol77 said:
BS Clausen was the most clutch QB in decades and arguably the 2nd best QB in program history.

We lost to Nebraska because they allowed steroids and their HS program to Nebraska OL star cheat that the NCAA allowed was too much for mid 90s SEC teams
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I’m not saying Clausen was bad. “Most clutch”, however?.. That’s an interesting way to describe a guy who had a 41% Interception to Touchdown rate and had a career rushing record of -130 yards.

It doesn’t matter why we lost to Nebraska. No TN people were predicting that we were going to get destroyed before the game.
 
#68
#68
adam.vol said:
I’m not saying Clausen was bad. “Most clutch”, however?.. That’s an interesting way to describe a guy who had a 41% Interception to Touchdown rate and had a career rushing record of -130 yards.

It doesn’t matter why we lost to Nebraska. No TN people were predicting that we were going to get destroyed before the game.
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Who cares about rushing record of QBs.. you think it's his fault he got sacked some? He had more rushing TDs than Tony Robinson and three less than Condredge Holloway, one less than Johnny Freaking Majors!

The guy was a road warrior and literally carried the team on his back in multiple wins vs Florida, Bama, along with Notre Dame, Miami, Michigan, Arkansas, LSU, and two top ten finishes.

What do you consider clutch?

www.sports-reference.com

Tennessee Volunteers Passing Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com

Check out the Tennessee Volunteers Passing Stats and more about College Football at Sports-Reference.com
www.sports-reference.com www.sports-reference.com
 
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#69
#69
Rickyvol77 said:
Who cares about rushing record of QBs.. you think it's his fault he got sacked some? He had more rushing TDs than Tony Robinson and three less than Condredge Holloway, one less than Johnny Freaking Majors!

The guy was a road warrior and literally carried the team on his back in multiple wins vs Florida, Bama, along with Notre Dame, Miami, Michigan, Arkansas, LSU, and two top ten finishes.

What do you consider clutch?

www.sports-reference.com

Tennessee Volunteers Passing Stats | College Football at Sports-Reference.com

Check out the Tennessee Volunteers Passing Stats and more about College Football at Sports-Reference.com
www.sports-reference.com www.sports-reference.com
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You keep talking about road wins.. Are you not also saying that he was bad at home?

Being clutch isn’t someone who has to play from behind against inferior competition. It never has been.
 
#71
#71
Rickyvol77 said:
not true...Tennessee could've beaten Miami
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Could have is not the same as would have. That Miami team would probably have beaten Tennessee by 2 touchdowns. It is possible we beat them, but unlikely.
That being said, there was no excuse for losing to LSU. None. We were unprepared, overconfident, and sloppy. That is on the coaches.
 
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#72
#72
Titans4Vols said:
The semi-pro team that was the 2001 Miami Hurricanes would have kicked our teeth in, so the gut punch was inevitable.

If you want to take anything good from it, at least it allowed the team to end the year with a W over Michigan.

I also don't view this as the downfall of the Fulmer era. That's 2005. Losing to LSU sucked, but that Tennessee team still played like a top 5-6 team all year long. The 05 Vols were one of the most talented in the country and should have done great things. Oh well, I suppose.
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It was the downfall imo as Fulmer seemed to lose the edge in recruiting too. I don’t recall who but remember TN surprisingly missing out on elite recruits. Plus, anyone could tell that Phil relied on coach Cut.

2005- preseason #3 ended 5-6.

2008- Bama brought at least 35k- 40k to Neyland that yr. That was the end as TN fans had enough of Fulmer.
 
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#74
#74
Voltopia said:
Man, the best team in the land wouldn't have lost to Matt Mauck running delayed QB draws all half. Or to a backup running back. UT had all the talent, but didn't have the discipline or focus to use it well. Not a totally unfamiliar story back in those days, not to those of us who were fans back then.

I always heard that a lot of the UT players were out partying super late the night before the game, including some of our best skill players. I recall reading that we had starting WRs and more out at 3 or 4 AM and didn't really take the game seriously. That may not be the truth - but it was one of the rumors that whole offseason.

Frankly, that parade around the track the night of the UT-FLA game the week before, with the UT players flaunting roses and waving to the crowd after getting back from Gainesville, will haunt any of us who saw it for the rest of our lives. I was too young to realize the danger at the time.

Saban's team didn't have our talent that year, but we saw them twice, and both times you could tell they were incredibly disciplined and very well coached. Even when they came to Knoxville, our talent didn't overwhelm their coaching. They lost 26-18 in our house, and it wasn't for a lack of effort. They kept coming that whole game. Never quit. And they were hungry for payback in Atlanta.
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One key element of Fulmer's success was gone by 2001, that being David Cutcliffe.
He was the coach who brought the discipline and structure to Tennessee's program in the 90's.
The fact that the 2001 team only lost one regular season game that year was a testament to the incredible talent on that roster, plus a tough-as-nails QB in Casey Clausen.
When Cutcliffe returned as OC in 2006, the team was noticeably better prepared for games and more disciplined with their execution until he left again.
We don't lose that '01 SEC title game if Cutcliffe is still at UT. That's one of those I've never gotten over.
 
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#75
#75
vik said:
We had more talent than LSU, yet we lost that game. But on the flip side, so many people say Miami had more talent than us so we would have lost the Rose Bowl.

Look. Miami had more talent than us on January 1st, 1986 in the Sugar Bowl, yet we won.
Miami had more talent than us on November 8th, 2003 in the Orange Bowl, yet we won.

As LSU taught us in the 2001 SECCG, they don't play this game on paper.
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We've always had Miami's number.
We may have well pulled the upset in the national title game.
The Vols were hardly chopped liver in '01.
 
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