10 Worst Bowl Losses in Tennessee Football History

Sep 5, 2015; Nashville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers fans flies the United States flag and the Volunteer flag prior to the game against the Bowling Green Falcons at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

10. 1952 Sugar Bowl: Tennessee Loses to Maryland Terrapins 28-13

This one is dead last on the list because, based on all reports, the Tennessee Vols themselves did not care about this game. But when you judge history, there’s always going to be that black mark with teams that won the national title and lost their bowl game.

This is one of those times.

The Vols entered this game ranked No. 1 in the country and 10-0 under Head Coach Gen. Robert Neyland, and they were poised to dominate the No. 3 ranked Maryland Terrapins having already been declared national champions.

But the Terps jumped out to a 21-0 lead and never relinquished it, pulling away with a 28-13 lead. That looks bad now because Maryland was 10-0 at the time, so their fans have every right to claim they were the national champions that year. And because Tennessee in all likelihood cared nothing about that game, we will never be able to fully and confidently consider this team a clear-cut national champion.

Again, this was not that big of a deal at the time. But retroactively, it looks bad for one of the most beloved Tennessee football teams ever, the 1951 national champions. And that all comes down to this loss, so it has to be on this list.

Next: #9: 2010 Music City Bowl