UT's most embarrassing defeats?

#78
#78
Wasn't there a game early in the Majors years against Duke where Tennessee lost to Duke 21-18 because they missed three extra points?

Having mentioned that, the defeats that stand out to me for embarrassment are:
1975 North Texas (the week before my first Vols game)
1979 Rutgers (What are Rutgers?)
1990 Alabama (that blocked FG)
1996 Memphis (the lowest point, I thought)
2005 Vanderbilt (the lowest point, amended)
2011 Kentucky (a WR at QB, gosh darn it)
2016 Vanderbilt (Sugar Bowl bid on the line)
2017 Georgia (first shutout loss since 1994)
2019 Georgia State (the lowest point, without question)
 
#79
#79
HollowaytoSeivers said:
Wasn't there a game early in the Majors years against Duke where Tennessee lost to Duke 21-18 because they missed three extra points?

Having mentioned that, the defeats that stand out to me for embarrassment are:
1975 North Texas (the week before my first Vols game)
1979 Rutgers (What are Rutgers?)
1990 Alabama (that blocked FG)
1996 Memphis (the lowest point, I thought)
2005 Vanderbilt (the lowest point, amended)
2011 Kentucky (a WR at QB, gosh darn it)
2016 Vanderbilt (Sugar Bowl bid on the line)
2017 Georgia (first shutout loss since 1994)
2019 Georgia State (the lowest point, without question)
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Before my time, but I think you might be thinking of the 1982 game:
1982 Tennessee Volunteers football team - Wikipedia
 
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#81
#81
It was the longest home winning streak vs an opponent in CFB. But obviously that doesn’t mean much to players today.
 
#84
#84
LittleCat said:
Don't really get why the UK loss this year is viewed so embarrassing? More for how the Vols played than the actual opponent? I feel like no matter what some UT fans will just always think UK is terrible and deserves to lose by 50. But UK was a fringe top 25 team on paper with a lot of returning players. The first couple games we looked sluggish and were trying to adjust to a new offense post Bowden/Snell years. But honestly on paper I thought we matched up decent against UT. For once Kentucky didn't "Kentucky" themselves and instead it was UT killing themselves.

This year's loss is way less embarrassing than the Ga St or whatever year UK won with a wr at qb. Just my two cents though.
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It’s the way we did it. We have a talented team yet our QB literally handed the game to you. We could have run the ball every time and never turned the ball over and possibly won. It’s also to do that we’ve not lost to you in a generation at Neyland. Congrats on the win though I talked a lot of crap to you about Kentucky and we shat the bed
 
#85
#85
LittleCat said:
JG has a higher ceiling but JG obviously played a million times worse. I don't understand what he was seeing on Saturday because historically he played some of his best games against UK before.

Anyway, sorry you feel that way. Was trying offer a different perspective. I think a few of you are a tad too prideful to consider a differing opinion.
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JG is infinitely worse than Terry Wilson. It’s not even close. Wilson is still overrated but I’d trade anything to have him right now
 
#86
#86
Tennessee’s team lost to Ky. Yes, JG definitely did his part but so did the rest of the team, including the sorry ass coaching staff. It was a team buttkickin. They’ll get another one Saturday
 
#87
#87
Rickyvol77 said:
Kentucky isn't even top 10


(in no order)

Georgia St - 2019
Memphis St - 1996
Wyoming - 2008 (however, understandable with the Fulmer thing)
Vanderbilt - 2016
Vanderbilt - 2012
Arkansas - 1992
South Carolina - 1992
Alabama - 1990
Washington St - 1988
Army - 1986
Virginia - 1980
UGA/USC - 1980
Rutgers - 1979
North Texas - 1975
Ole Miss - 1969
Chattanooga - 1959
Vanderbilt - 1954
Vanderbilt - 1909
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to a 1-4 Jack Crowe-coached team that had lost to the Citadel and Memphis State....that one's underrated on the "bad losses list"....the next one on the list at Columbia in the Taneyhill cluster was bad, too, except for the Mose Phillips run
 
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#90
#90
MeanOrange said:
I know VN can add more but here is four that standout to me:
1) Chattanooga 1959 (my first UT game).
2) Georgia State 2019.
3) Kentucky 2020.
4) Wyoming (forgot the year).

Guess who was the HC for two of those games.
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1969 loss to ole miss 38-0
 
#91
#91
The Arkansas game when 27 vol players missed a tackle on that punt return guy. One of many embarrassing performances.
 
#92
#92
Cartervol said:
It's what this administration does. I don't get it either. They hire on the cheap and then it derails, paying mountains of cash to the guy they shouldn't have hired. They've wasted more money hiring ham and eggers than if they'd just bit the bullet and hire a good coach that's done it before. Butch Jones came from a weak conference and lived off Brain Kelly's recruits. Doofus was a awful hire. Pruitt looks to be no different at this point. His offenses have been offensive for 3 years running.
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Pruitt needs to go get a 5th year transfer to save his job next season.
 
#93
#93
JonGrudensAgent said:
Im gonna throw 2008 Alabama in there too.

Watching Neyland get overrun by Bama fans was disheartening.
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I always said THAT is what got Fulmer fired, and the empty house for the Wyoming loss.

ZZ13 said:
For me it was the 1991 Fiesta Bowl. Scored to go up 17-7 in the third and then proceeded to hand Penn State 5 touchdowns in what seemed about 5 minutes. There is a story that the players tanked it on purpose to stick it to Majors. But there is no video or audio to prove that.
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I find that absolutely impossible to believe. Whoever got revenge by screwing themselves and a whole season. Team breakdown and the screw MAjors story was to save face.

The 1990 Bama game hurt most because UT has made it. Johnny Majors had finally brought us the promised land, and there was Bama. It really hurt that they were the team to deny us.
 
#95
#95
For me
96 Memphis
01 LSU (c)
Biggest punch in the nards

20 Kentucky most embarrassing

For me it’s KY because their a rivalry. They hadn’t beaten Tennessee at home in over 20 years. It was in the 1800’s the last time KY beat Tennessee by that much at Tennessee.

Many bad games, many embarrassing games......to me that was by far the worst.
 
#96
#96
LittleCat said:
Don't really get why the UK loss this year is viewed so embarrassing? More for how the Vols played than the actual opponent? I feel like no matter what some UT fans will just always think UK is terrible and deserves to lose by 50. But UK was a fringe top 25 team on paper with a lot of returning players. The first couple games we looked sluggish and were trying to adjust to a new offense post Bowden/Snell years. But honestly on paper I thought we matched up decent against UT. For once Kentucky didn't "Kentucky" themselves and instead it was UT killing themselves.

This year's loss is way less embarrassing than the Ga St or whatever year UK won with a wr at qb. Just my two cents though.
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You need to understand that UT coaches get fired for losing to KY.

Without being mean or putting your program down, it's just the facts.

In no time ever should your program be better than ours....which I will state you currently are.

We were for decades from 1900 to 2005 a top tier destination school with multiple NC and top ten in wins and bowl wins.

We have fallen very far to the point alot of idiot fans even on here now expect just mediocrity from us....but the fact is even in the biggest down turn UT has had we still have never lost to you at home in 30 years and only twice I believe away.

Losing to KY is the same as losing to Ga State for us.

It just doesnt happen.
 
#97
#97
HollowaytoSeivers said:
I looked it up. The 21-18 loss was in 1976, Bill Battle's last season. Stuff like that probably helped ease him out. The game you posted was a 25-24 loss to Duke. Thanks anyway 05.
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I was at both those games. The ‘82 Duke team had Ben Bennett and was a decent team. The embarrassment of that game was Dukes last possession. They got the ball on their own 1 with around 7 minutes left. They proceeded to run out the clock with a 98 yard drive that ended with them taking a knee on the last play of the game at our 1. Those of you who were there remember it well, I suspect.

One point I’d like to make. In 45 years of being a fan, there have been so many of these “embarrassments”, this latest one just goes on the pile.
 
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#98
#98
ZZ13 said:
I was at both those games. The ‘82 Duke team had Ben Bennett and was a decent team. The embarrassment of that game was Dukes last possession. They got the ball on their own 1 with around 7 minutes left. They proceeded to run out the clock with a 98 yard drive that ended with them taking a knee on the last play of the game at our 1. Those of you who were there remember it well, I suspect.

One point I’d like to make. In 45 years of being a fan, there have been so many of these “embarrassments”, this latest one just goes on the pile.
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A pile that, unfortunately, continues to grow with alarming regularity.
 
#99
#99
Memphis 1996 at night at the Liberty Bowl, Manning was the QB, glad we have not played Memphis recently, would be embarrassing yet again
 
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