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Tennessee football: Vols 10 most improved years after missing bowl game

By Caleb Calhoun

Andy Kelly #8, Quarterback for the University of Tennessee Volunteers runs the ball during the NCAA Southwest Conference Cotton Bowl Classic championship college football game against the University of Arkansas Razorbacks on 1 January 1990 at the Cotton Bowl Stadium, Dallas, Texas, United States. The Tennessee Volunteers won the game 31 - 27. (Photo by Joe Patronite/Allsport/Getty Images)
Andy Kelly #8, Quarterback for the University of Tennessee Volunteers runs the ball during the NCAA Southwest Conference Cotton Bowl Classic championship college football game against the University of Arkansas Razorbacks on 1 January 1990 at the Cotton Bowl Stadium, Dallas, Texas, United States. The Tennessee Volunteers won the game 31 - 27. (Photo by Joe Patronite/Allsport/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Joe Patronite /Allsport
Photo by Joe Patronite /Allsport /

1. 1989 (11-1, 6-1)

1988 record: 5-6 (3-4)

People who follow the Vols are not surprised by this one. There is so much significance to the 1989 season that we don’t know where to start, and it still affects the program to this day. All of it makes this season No. 1 on our list.

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    • For starters, it’s the biggest improvement in terms of record, making it obviously No. 1 by our criteria. Also, it’s a year in which Tennessee football has its most legitimate claim to a share of a national title that they have never used. This was also their second 11-win season in school history and first since 1938 as they won a share of the SEC Championship.

    Finally, 1989 ushered in the era of modern success for the Vols. It was the first of 16 straight seasons making a bowl game and 13 straight finishing in the Top 25, four of which they won SEC Championships and one of which they won a national championship.

    Coming into the year, the Vols were 5-6 the year before. It was their first losing season since 1980 and had Johnny Majors back on the hot seat. But the silver lining was they had won five straight after an 0-6 start. That momentum carried over.

    The Vols immediately made a splash, upsetting the No. 6 ranked UCLA Bruins 24-6 on the road in the second game of the season. Two games later, they upset the No. 4 ranked Auburn Tigers 21-14, and after beating the Georgia Bulldogs 17-14, they were No. 6 in the nation.

    During the following off-week, though, UT dismissed Reggie Cobb. In the midst of that distraction, they lost to the No. 10 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide on the road 47-30, but they made another switch in that game from Sterling Henton to Andy Kelly at quarterback. After that, they didn’t lose again.

    The Vols won out to capture a share of the SEC with Alabama and Auburn, all of whom beat each other and finished with the same conference record. Then they beat the the No. 10 ranked Arkansas Razorbacks on New Year’s Day in 1990 to break in the historically great decade and finish the year ranked No. 5.

    Next. Top 10 games Tee Martin played with Vols. dark

    By every metric, this is one of the greatest turnaround seasons for any program in history, but that certainly holds true for Tennessee football. It was incredibly to watch, but the real credit goes back to 1988, as the team didn’t quit after an 0-6 start. That strong finish was just what they needed for the turnaround year to usher in their new era.

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