8. 1971 Liberty Bowl: Fumble, controversial officiating cost Hogs
If freshmen could play in 1971, Tennessee football may have won a national championship. The Vols were in a transition year, waiting for Condredge Holloway, and Bill Battle’s second team still went 9-2 in the regular season. Ranked No. 9 overall, they were set to meet the No. 18 ranked Arkansas Razorbacks in the Liberty Bowl.
In what was a defensive slugfest, Arkansas had the ball up 13-7 late. They seemingly nailed a third field goal to go up 16-7. However, there was a holding penalty on the attempt, which rarely if ever happens. Because of that, it was waived off. The Hogs then fumbled the ball and appeared to fall on it, but somehow possession was awarded to UT.
Finally, UT was able to cash in on an Arkansas turnover, as the Razorbacks had been torching the Vols with turnovers all game. They drove down the field off that fumble and scored a touchdown to go up 14-13. When Arkansas got the ball back, they threw an interception, securing Battle’s team a victory and a 10-2 record.
The fumble, the controversial calls, and the fact that a field goal to put the game out of reach was waived off all contributed to this being an incredibly lucky win for the Vols. Arkansas had owned the fourth quarter with two other field goals before that point, so Rocky Top was beyond lucky to pull that one out. But that’s not even their luckiest game against Arkansas.