Vols went 7 years without Bowl?

#1
Volstylexx

Volstylexx

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#1
So i was doing some research for a project I'm working on and found it interesting to see that Tennessee did not go to a bowl for 7 years.. from 1958-1965

During that time they won 34 games and lost 30 games under the direction of coach Bowden Wyatt.

I bring this up for 2 reasons:

#1. I wasn't born until 1981 so i grew up loving the Vols in apparently what was their "Prime". Why would TN accept such mediocrity for that lengthy of a period of time?

#2. To make the point that there have been moments in UT football history that were apparently far worse than the moments we're in the midst of.

Was the '58-65 stretch the worst period in UT football history? Just interested in you guys take on the "bad" times of UT football.
 
#2
#2
Well one factor in that is back then there weren't more bowls than there were teams like we have now.
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#4
#4
Yankee_Vol said:
This is bad....
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Yea, I agree this is bad. Don't even say seven years. If we don't pull out of our funk in two years there is something wrong. Fire everyone and get the checkbook out and hire new personnel from A.D. down. Worst case scenario do like Auburn and buy a Heisman hopeful.....HA! Under the table of course...:)
 
#5
#5
[QUOTE

#1. I wasn't born until 1981 so i grew up loving the Vols in apparently what was their "Prime". Why would TN accept such mediocrity for that lengthy of a period of time?[/QUOTE]

For Tennessee football Prime, see General Robert Reese Neyland.
 
#6
#6
There was 8 bowl games per year in that span. What are there now? 30?
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#8
#8
Volfan3 said:
Yea, I agree this is bad. Don't even say seven years. If we don't pull out of our funk in two years there is something wrong. Fire everyone and get the checkbook out and hire new personnel from A.D. down. Worst case scenario do like Auburn and buy a Heisman hopeful.....HA! Under the table of course...:)
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Actually I would like a new AD :)
 
#9
#9
Slydell said:
35 in 2010. Pretty sad, in my opinion.
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That equals 70 teams out of 120. Almost impossible to fill those bowls up without taking some teams with losing records. This is beyond sad. I have wondered over the last couple of years why we don't host the Pilot Bowl at Neyland. Seems like a good idea.
 
#10
#10
manfromtn said:
That equals 70 teams out of 120. Almost impossible to fill those bowls up without taking some teams with losing records. This is beyond sad. I have wondered over the last couple of years why we don't host the Pilot Bowl at Neyland. Seems like a good idea.
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Something tells me that the two teams playing in the pilot bowl wouldn't sell 100,000 tickets.
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#12
#12
Volstylexx said:
So i was doing some research for a project I'm working on and found it interesting to see that Tennessee did not go to a bowl for 7 years.. from 1958-1965

During that time they won 34 games and lost 30 games under the direction of coach Bowden Wyatt.

I bring this up for 2 reasons:

#1. I wasn't born until 1981 so i grew up loving the Vols in apparently what was their "Prime". Why would TN accept such mediocrity for that lengthy of a period of time?

#2. To make the point that there have been moments in UT football history that were apparently far worse than the moments we're in the midst of.

Was the '58-65 stretch the worst period in UT football history? Just interested in you guys take on the "bad" times of UT football.
Click to expand...

Johnny Majors first 5 years we were 35-32-2.

Wonder if Coach Dooley gets 5 years if no better?
 
#15
#15
As someone mentioned, back in the day the bowls werent what they are today nor were there as many. It wasnt until somewhere around the early mid 80s that ADs realized these things were tremendous sources of revenue for the teams and conferences as well as the hosting cities. Considering each bowl is individually owned/ran, there is no financial liability for the NCAA and ultimately the schools. Only a benefit.

If you look back to the 70s when Johnny can marching home, you'll see a string of 5, 6, even 7 game win seasons but no bowl. If we had as many bowls then as today, we'd been in many more even with those wonderful 5-5-1 seasons.
 
#16
#16
2000-2009 was the first ever calendar decade without a team in the AP top 10 since the AP poll began in the 1930s. Eleven years is most definately the longest period of decline the program has ever experienced.
 
#17
#17
Volru said:
2000-2009 was the first ever calendar decade without a team in the AP top 10 since the AP poll began in the 1930s. Eleven years is most definately the longest period of decline the program has ever experienced.
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2000-2001 season we were 11-2 winning the Citrus Bowl and finishing 4th in both Coaches and AP poll
 
#21
#21
the worst memory for me is losing to florida and bama for most of this decade. I can remember though, when i was at an arkansas game a few years back and sitting in the sixth row with the arkansas fans. We had erik ainge at quarterback and this was the year we went to the sec championship. Other than that go vols
 
#22
#22
You probably need to rewrite your statement again If its "in" the top 10, there's plenty of examples where we were ranked there. 2005, in our 5-6 season, we started 3rd, went to 5th, then 10th, then 8th, before dropping from the top 10. That's just one year.

Maybe you should state 'end' in the top 10 and still that doesnt make the statement any better. Maybe saying the fewest top 10 finishes.
 
#23
#23
I believe in those years (58 - 65) there were only 8 bowl games each year...rule out the fact that the Big 10 and Pac 10 always played the Rose Bowl and that leaves you with 7...so you would only be taking the top 14 teams in the country to play.

Back then, you had to be pretty good to end up in a bowl, this was the era when going to a bowl actually meant something and what brought about the "Bowl Bonanza" that we have now by increasing bowl numbers and $$$.

Soon the cycle will start again, and you'll see bowl nubers decrease, as attendance decreases and sponsorship decreases, etc...folks will start dropping bowls and it will get back to actually being EXTRA special again...IMO
 
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#24
#24
Bowl Bonanza is more the fault of ESPN than anyone else.

They will cover any bowl game, and should. They have an excess of air time when its not football weekend or down the stretch of college basketball.

This keeps small bowl games going and keeps their organizers stocked with cash even when the stands are half empty.
 
#25
#25
Volru said:
Excuse me. Memory must be failing. Try ten years then.
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Hasn't been ten seasons since then. We also finished the regular season in the top 10 in 2003.

Here's the gaps on finishing the season, before or after bowl games, in the top-10 in the AP:

1973-1984: twelve years
1957-1966: ten years
2004-2009: six years

So we still have some catching up to do, but we probably will get there, unfortunately...
 
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