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Usain Bolt’s loss to Justin Gatlin and Christian Coleman makes the Vols Sprinter U

By Caleb Calhoun

LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 05: Justin Gatlin (left) of the United States leads the Men's 100 metres final from Christian Coleman of the United States and Usain Bolt of Jamaica (right) during day two of the 16th IAAF World Athletics Championships London 2017 at The London Stadium on August 5, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Gatllin won in a time of 9.92 seconds (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images for IAAF)
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 05: Justin Gatlin (left) of the United States leads the Men's 100 metres final from Christian Coleman of the United States and Usain Bolt of Jamaica (right) during day two of the 16th IAAF World Athletics Championships London 2017 at The London Stadium on August 5, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Gatllin won in a time of 9.92 seconds (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images for IAAF) /
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Two former Tennessee Volunteers beat Usain Bolt at the 100m world championships on Saturday. Therefore, UT should officially be called Sprinter U.

Related Story: A look at the 4 Vols who won 5 medals at Rio Olympics in 2016

Just a year ago, Justin Gatlin still had doping allegations hanging over him, Christian Coleman hadn’t arrived and Usain Bolt continued to be heralded as the best sprinter in the world.

But the Olympics last year should have raised people’s eyebrows that Gatlin, despite his age at 34 years old at the time, still had it.

A member of the 2002 Vols track national championship team and a gold medalist in 2004, Gatlin got off to a great start in the 100m race and took home the silver medal. He almost beat Usain Bolt, but Bolt’s strides were too long to overcome.

Still, he gave a warning shot that with his controversies behind him, he wasn’t going anywhere.

Then came this past college track and field season, and Christian Coleman dominated for the Vols. Coleman broke out as a superstar this past season.

And we all figured he was the next Justin Gatlin.

So what happened at the 100m World Championships? Gatlin, who is on the back end of his career, and Coleman, who is just beginning his career, finished first and second respectively.

Gatlin won the title amidst a quick round of boos, which he had to find hilarious!

Usain Bolt, the only one of the three who is in his prime, albeit on the back end at 30, came in a shocking third.

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How about that for the Vols track and field program? The anointed fastest player in the world over the past decade could not beat a young up and comer or a veteran who had to miss his prime years due to his own controversies.

To be fair, Bolt deserves all the praise he gets. And he was gracious in defeat. But this was an impressive night for Tennessee.

And this also speaks to SEC speed as a whole.

According to Nick Zaccardi of NBC Sports, every U.S. runner to defeat Usain Bolt came from the SEC.

So it looks like that theory about SEC speed is true. Still, at this point, we officially declare the University of Tennessee Sprinter U above the others.

Next: 10 Vols who need their jersey numbers retired

Gatlin is already a gold medalist, and it’s obvious Coleman is coming. Those two to finishing No. 1 and No. 2 in this race is enough to make that case. Add it to the titles of Wide Receiver U and Punter U.

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