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Ken Stabler Made His Mark On the Tennessee-Alabama Rivalry

By Caleb Calhoun

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As quarterback for the Alabama Crimson Tide, the late Ken Stabler led an amazing comeback over the Tennessee Vols in 1966, a heartbreaker for Vol Nation.

Today, Tennessee Vols fans join Alabama Crimson Tide fans and Oakland Raiders fans in mourning the loss of Ken Stabler. One of the rare quarterbacks to win a Super Bowl and a college football national championship, Stabler was certainly a winner.

And he was a clutch performer.

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We all know the story of the 1977 “Ghost in the Post” game against the Baltimore Colts, and we also know that without that the Raiders do not win the Super Bowl.

There is also a story that goes back to the one team that Stabler led on an undefeated season in 1966. And it is one of many stories in the Alabama-Tennessee rivalry, one that indeed helped elevate it.

The Tide would not have gone undefeated and may have lost their conference title had it not been for a great fourth quarter in that game.

If your grandfather has always been a Vols fan, he might remember this one well.

Alabama was trailing Tennessee 10-0 through three quarters in pouring rain in Knoxville.

Late into the fourth quarter, Stabler began to show his mobility as he directed a touchdown drive capped off by him running it in himself. He then converted a two-point conversion by throwing off his back foot in a pass he barely got off.

The Tide were still down 10-8 with 3:23 left, but they got the ball back.

Stabler took them down the field again to set up a game-winning field goal, and as the holder, he took a really low snap and recovered it just in time for the kick to be converted.

Alabama took the lead 11-10.

Then, Tennessee missed a 19-yard field goal with a chance to win at the end. See highlights from the game here.

This is one of many heartbreaking losses the Vols have suffered to Alabama, and it always seems to be rooted in some sort of late mistake in the Red Zone in a game that is low-scoring. There was the 9-6 loss in 1990 when a field goal was blocked, the 6-3 loss in 2005 when Cory Anderson fumbled the ball into the end zone, and the 12-10 loss in 2009 when another kick was blocked.

This one ended on a missed chip shot in which the Vols had a two-score lead with less than four minutes to play. It is not just a memorable game in the rivalry. It helped take the rivalry to another level.

And the credit for this game goes to Stabler, who showed even then that he was a winner who would find a way to get it done.

Rest in Peace Ken Stabler. You were a college football legend and a Super Bowl champion who helped elevate the sport to where it is today. All of us who follow the sport dearly will miss you.

Next: Vols Recruiting Notes at Dead Period: Defensive End

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