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Tennessee football: Five other times Vols C-USA foes had winning records

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 04: Jarrett Guarantano #2 of the Tennessee Volunteers shakes hands with Keon Howard #2 of the Southern Miss Golden Eagles after the game at Neyland Stadium on November 4, 2017 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 04: Jarrett Guarantano #2 of the Tennessee Volunteers shakes hands with Keon Howard #2 of the Southern Miss Golden Eagles after the game at Neyland Stadium on November 4, 2017 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images
Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images /

3. Memphis Tigers – 2005

Tennessee Volunteers win 20-16

Memphis final record: 7-5 (5-3); W Motor City Bowl

We’re back to a game between Tennessee football and a C-USA team with a winning record while the Vols were in the midst of a losing season. Just like that 2017 team, UT entered this game with a 3-5 record and on a four-game losing streak. That was all despite the fact that they had started the year ranked No. 3.

This was the only year ever, though, that the Vols faced a Memphis Tigers team who would finish with a better record. Although that’s been commonplace this decade, it’s also irrelevant since the teams don’t play each other. But they did in this game. Memphis was in the midst of its best three-year run in school history before this decade under Tommy West.

That was all thanks to DeAngelo Williams. UT, meanwhile, was trying to avoid its first losing season in 17 years. But building for the future as well, they ended a quarterback controversy between Rick Clausen and Erik Ainge the week before by settling with Ainge. It resulted in a disastrous start.

Memphis was playing this game without Williams, who was hurt. And they still managed to build a 13-0 lead over the Vols. Desperate to avoid elimination from a bowl game, Phillip Fulmer put Clausen back in, and as he had done twice that season, Clausen cleaned up the mess. He had back to back passing touchdowns, one on a 94-yard drive, to end the first half.

So UT went into halftime up 14-13. Memphis went back up 16-14 with a second half field goal, but James Wilhoit had two fourth quarter field goals to make it a 20-16 win. The Vols held on in ugly fashion. But there attempts to avoid a bowl miss failed anyway, as the next week they lost to Jay Cutler and the Vanderbilt Commodores, their first loss to the program in 23 years.

Meanwhile, the Tigers fell to 4-5 after that loss. But, in a great coaching job by West, they rebounded despite being down to their fourth-string running back. Williams returned, and they won their final two games. Then they beat the Akron Zips 38-31 in a great final game by Williams to win the Motor City Bowl and finish 7-5.

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