Today in UT Football history

[StarRaider]

September 26, 1959

UT - 3
Auburn - 0

Auburn beat the Vols 7-0 during their 1957 national championship season and held UT to zero first downs in 1958. The Plainsman were also riding a 24 game winning streak as they came to Knoxville to open the 1959 season.

From the beginning of the game, the outmanned and “outweighed” Vols did “what they set out to do— make every block and tackle count.” In the second quarter, Ken Sadler pounced on an Auburn fumble at their 43 yard line. Moments later, Cotton Letner, who missed a field goal four minutes earlier, booted a 19 yarder to give UT a 3-0 lead at the half.

UTs defense continued to be relentless, making two goal line stands in the second half to preserve the 3-0 upset.


View attachment 680808

 

[peaygolf]

September 27, 1980

UT - 42
Auburn- 0

Tennessee’s offense and defense found a perfect blend in Birmingham, and accomplished something that hadn’t been done by a Vols team since 1967–back to back victories over the Tigers.

QB Jeff Olszewski had 11 straight completions, Terry Daniels ran for 125 yards on 21 carries, and the defense held All-American tailback James Brooks to only 36 yards rushing in the decisive victory.

The Associated Press named Olszewski “Southeast Back of the Week” for his amazing performance. The defensive effort handled Auburn it’s first shutout in four years.

 

[Tin Man]

September 27, 1980

UT - 42
Auburn- 0

Tennessee’s offense and defense found a perfect blend in Birmingham, and accomplished something that hadn’t been done by a Vols team since 1967–back to back victories over the Tigers.

QB Jeff Olszewski had 11 straight competitions, Terry Daniels ran for 125 yards on 21 carries, and the defense held All-American tailback James Brooks to only 36 yards rushing in the decisive victory.

The Associated Press named Olszewski “Southeast Back of the Week” for his amazing performance. The defensive effort handled Auburn it’s first shutout in four years.


View attachment 681136

Edit: I truly enjoyed seeing this mastery of Barn.

 

[peaygolf]

September 28, 2013

UT - 31
South Alabama- 24

South Alabama scored on the opening drive to go up 7-0 and then forced a three-and-out, the Vols then refocused. LaDarrell McNeil intercepted a pass to set up a Michael Palardy field goal.

After that, the Vols forced three punts and scored on three straight drives, including a touchdown pass from Worley to A.J. Branisel, a touchdown pass from Worley to Josh Smith and a rushing touchdown by Marlin Lane. UT was in complete control 24-7, but then the early mistakes began. On the next two drives, Worley threw back to back interceptions

Still, Tennessee football held the lead at halftime and put the picks behind them by opening the second half with a 6-play 76-yard drive and capping it off with a touchdown run by Rajion Neal. Then they got an interception, so they had the ball up 31-7 in the third.

Worley then threw his third pick, and everything changed. South Alabama would score 17 consecutive points.

All of a sudden, it was 31-24 in the fourth quarter with over eight minutes left. South Alabama then forced a three-and-out and got the ball with a chance to tie. They slowly moved down the field, mounting a 16-play 79-yard drive to bring up a 1st and goal at the Tennessee 7-yard line.

That’s when the Vols’ defense finally stiffened. A tackle for a loss on first down and a sack on second down put South Alabama behind the eight-ball. They then had a small completion to bring up 4th and goal from the 8-yard line. Brian Randolph intercepted the 4th and goal pass, though. Three runs by Neal for a first down allowed the Vols to the ice the game and run out the clock.

 

[StarRaider]

 

[MemphisVol77]

That video quality was through the roof. Vol Netwok knocked it out the park restoring it. I rewatched the 98 FL game before the season and the footage wasn't half that good.

I wish they'd restore the 85 Sugar Bowl and most big games through the 90's.

 

[peaygolf]

September 29, 1951

UT - 14
Mississippi St - 0

The Maroons made two costly mistakes early in the opening game of 1951. Within the first five minutes, MSU fumbled and had a punt blocked. Hank Lauricella and Andy Kozar each scored to put UT ahead.

From then on, it was the Vols defense that dominated. The defensive front kept pressure on the State quarterback all game, limiting their vaunted passing attack to nothing but short passes.

It wasn’t perfect game, but it was the start to a perfect season—-and a National Championship.

 

[peaygolf]

September 30, 1995

UT - 31
Oklahoma State- 0

Jay Graham ran for two touchdowns and Peyton Manning threw a pair of scoring passes Saturday, leading No. 12 Tennessee to a 31-0 rout of Oklahoma State. Tennessee (4-1) never was challenged by the Cowboys (1-4), who were playing the 900th game in school history. Graham ran 1 yard for a score 5:02 into the game for a 7-0 lead and Manning connected with Andy McCullough on a 12-yard pass with 70 seconds left in the first half.

Jeff Hall boomed a 53-yard field goal to give the Volunteers a 17-0 advantage on the final play of the first half. It was the longest kick in history by a Tennessee freshman.

Graham scored on a 3-yard run with 5:47 left in the third quarter and Manning hit Kent with an 8-yard TD pass with 15 seconds remaining in the period. Manning, who completed 17 of 25 passes for 199 yards without an interception, improved to 11-2 as a starter.

Kent caught 8 passes for 107 yards. The game marked the first time since 1990 that Tennessee played a foe from the Big Eight Conference and it was the first-ever meeting between the schools.

 

[peaygolf]

October 1, 1994

UT - 10
Washington State - 9

Receiver Nilo Silvan took a reverse 62 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter and John Becksvoort kicked a 27-yard field goal in the fourth, giving Tennessee a 10-9 win over the No. 15 Cougars. '(The Cougars) play a lot of man-to-man and a lot of pressure,' Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer said. 'It was an excellent call by (offensive coordinator) David Cutliffe.' Silvan's score came with 3:34 left in the period and provided Tennessee with its first lead at 7-6. It was his only carry of the game and the first touchdown allowed this season by the Cougars (3-1), who had not allowed a team to reach the end zone in 16 quarters dating to last season. 'The reverse was a big play,' Washington State coach Mike Price said. 'Our defense played hard, but both teams did.' Washington State had entered the gave having given up just four field goals in their first three games. The Volunteers, playing their fourth ranked opponent in five games, played some defense of their own Saturday, sacking Cougars quarterback Chad Davis six times. 'It's a big win for us,' said Fulmer, who watched his team improve to 2-3. 'Washington State is a very good football team, especially the defense. They have a lot of athletes.' But the Volunteers, playing their third ranked opponent in five games, played some defense of their own, sacking Washington State quarterback Chad Davis six times.

The Cougars were unable to sack or rattle freshman quarterback Peyton Manning, the son of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning who was making his first start. Manning completed 7 of 14 passes for 79 yards but did not make any glaring mistakes.

 

[IndianaVol]

October 1, 1994

UT - 10
Washington State - 9

Receiver Nilo Silvan took a reverse 62 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter and John Becksvoort kicked a 27-yard field goal in the fourth, giving Tennessee a 10-9 win over the No. 15 Cougars. '(The Cougars) play a lot of man-to-man and a lot of pressure,' Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer said. 'It was an excellent call by (offensive coordinator) David Cutliffe.' Silvan's score came with 3:34 left in the period and provided Tennessee with its first lead at 7-6. It was his only carry of the game and the first touchdown allowed this season by the Cougars (3-1), who had not allowed a team to reach the end zone in 16 quarters dating to last season. 'The reverse was a big play,' Washington State coach Mike Price said. 'Our defense played hard, but both teams did.' Washington State had entered the gave having given up just four field goals in their first three games. The Volunteers, playing their fourth ranked opponent in five games, played some defense of their own Saturday, sacking Cougars quarterback Chad Davis six times. 'It's a big win for us,' said Fulmer, who watched his team improve to 2-3. 'Washington State is a very good football team, especially the defense. They have a lot of athletes.' But the Volunteers, playing their third ranked opponent in five games, played some defense of their own, sacking Washington State quarterback Chad Davis six times.

The Cougars were unable to sack or rattle freshman quarterback Peyton Manning, the son of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning who was making his first start. Manning completed 7 of 14 passes for 79 yards but did not make any glaring mistakes.


View attachment 682637

No wait - 50% completion rate and only 79 yds in his first start...you mean one of the greatest of all time didn't blow the doors off the opponent in his first game as starter ???

Yeah that's sarcasm for you younger folk....HAHAHAA

 

[peaygolf]

October 2, 1971

UT - 20
Florida - 13

The Vols had just come off a heartbreaking 10-9 loss to the Auburn Tigers and were 1-1 heading to Gainesville. They were facing a Florida team led by their former coach, Doug Dickey. This had all the makings of a thriller already.

And the game became just that. Led by quarterback Phil Pierce, the Vols and Gators were going back and forth all day. Midway into the third quarter, the game was tied at 13 when an a amazing Florida punt pinned the Vols on their own half-yard line.

That’s when Pierce, a third-string quarterback by the way, led arguably the most famous drive in Tennessee football history. The Vols went 99.5 yards and scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 20-yard pass from Pierce to Stan Trott .

Up 20-13, the defense then came through. The Gators twice drove into Vols territory and had a chance to win, but UT legend Jackie Walker stopped them the first time with an interception. Then they turned it over on downs their final drive, allowing the Vols to secure the victory.

There was no magnitude in this win, as Tennessee football didn’t win any division, conference or national title. The loss dropped the Gators to 0-5 on the season en route to a 4-7 1971 record overall. And coming off a 38-7 win over Florida at home the year before, Vols fans actually could have been concerned about struggling like that to the Gators.

However, the win by itself was beyond thrilling, and in the moment it was definitely worth celebrating. Nobody on Rocky Top knew at the time that it would be the Vol’s last win in Gainesville against the Gators for 30 years.

 

[OneManGang]

October 2, 1971

UT - 20
Florida - 13

The Vols had just come off a heartbreaking 10-9 loss to the Auburn Tigers and were 1-1 heading to Gainesville. They were facing a Florida team led by their former coach, Doug Dickey. This had all the makings of a thriller already.

And the game became just that. Led by quarterback Phil Pierce, the Vols and Gators were going back and forth all day. Midway into the third quarter, the game was tied at 13 when an a amazing Florida punt pinned the Vols on their own half-yard line.

That’s when Pierce, a third-string quarterback by the way, led arguably the most famous drive in Tennessee football history. The Vols went 99.5 yards and scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 20-yard pass from Pierce to Stan Trott .

Up 20-13, the defense then came through. The Gators twice drove into Vols territory and had a chance to win, but UT legend Jackie Walker stopped them the first time with an interception. Then they turned it over on downs their final drive, allowing the Vols to secure the victory.

There was no magnitude in this win, as Tennessee football didn’t win any division, conference or national title. The loss dropped the Gators to 0-5 on the season en route to a 4-7 1971 record overall. And coming off a 38-7 win over Florida at home the year before, Vols fans actually could have been concerned about struggling like that to the Gators.

However, the win by itself was beyond thrilling, and in the moment it was definitely worth celebrating. Nobody on Rocky Top knew at the time that it would be the Vol’s last win in Gainesville against the Gators for 30 years.


View attachment 683021

Looking at that shot I have two thoughts: 1) Phil Pierce had an impressive vertical jump, particularly considering he was wearing full 1960's-era pads, and 2) I don't want to hear another damned word about Tim Couch's "jump passes."

 

[mercuryvol]

In defense of the Vols, that 30 year span included a number of years ( too lazy to look up the exact number) that UT didn’t play the gatas. Helps me to deal emotionally with those years that we hosed ourselves and lost to them after the SEC started divisional play.

 

[peaygolf]

October 3, 1987

UT - 38
California - 12

On a cold, windy afternoon, UT jumped out to an early lead and never looked back.

A national tv audience saw the Vols used a short punt and a fumble recovery to run to a 17-0 lead before Cal ever got a first down.

Reggie Cobb ran for 94 yards, caught 3 passes for 43 yards and scored 3 times on the day. Jeff Francis was great, completing 21-26 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns.