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10 Times the Tennessee vs Alabama Game Meant the Most to Both the Vols and the Tide

By Caleb Calhoun

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Nov 15, 2014; Knoxville, TN, USA; General view of Neyland Stadium during the first half of the game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Kentucky Wildcats. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 15, 2014; Knoxville, TN, USA; General view of Neyland Stadium during the first half of the game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Kentucky Wildcats. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /

6. 1972: Alabama 17 Tennessee 10

Going into this game, the Vols had only one fluke loss to the Auburn Tigers on the road. However, the week before this game, Auburn had lost to the LSU Tigers, putting the Vols back in the SEC Championship race.

Meanwhile, Bear Bryant’s Alabama Crimson Tide were undefeated and heading into Knoxville. So with Tennessee ranked No. 10 and Alabama ranked No. 3, this would be a huge opportunity for the Vols. The same would hold true for Alabama, who needed this win.

Bryant schemed his defense perfectly for Condredge Holloway and the Vols’ offense, and much like what Gene Stallings would do to Heath Shuler 20 years later, the Vols could not generate any yards.

Still, the Vols had a 10-3 lead with 2:39 left in the game. So it looked like they were going to pull out an epic win.

But Alabama scored to tie it, and on the very next position, Holloway fumbled. That fumble put them on the Tennessee 17-yard line with the game tied at 10. And Terry Davis ran it in to give the Tide a 17-10 victory.

Tennessee would still finish 10-2 and ranked in the Top 10 at the end of the year, but they blew a huge chance to do something more with this game. Little did they know that this would only be the third loss in a 12-game losing streak in the Tennessee vs Alabama series at the time.

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