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Tennessee football’s top 25 single-game performances in history

By Caleb Calhoun

Peyton Manning #16, Quarterback for the University of Tennessee Volunteers during the NCAA Pac 10 college football game against the University of California, Los Angeles UCLA Bruins on 6th September 1997 at the Rose Bowl Stadium, Pasadena, California, United States. The Tennessee Volunteers won the game 30 - 24. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Allsport/Getty Images)
Peyton Manning #16, Quarterback for the University of Tennessee Volunteers during the NCAA Pac 10 college football game against the University of California, Los Angeles UCLA Bruins on 6th September 1997 at the Rose Bowl Stadium, Pasadena, California, United States. The Tennessee Volunteers won the game 30 - 24. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Allsport/Getty Images) /
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Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images
Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images /

22. Dustin Colquitt

2003 vs. South Carolina Gamecocks

No. 8 Tennessee Volunteers win 23-20 (OT)

51.7 yards per punt on 7 punts

It’s very rare when you can say a punter won you a game. However, as Punter U, if any school was going to be able to make that claim, it would be Tennessee football. Dustin Colquitt did it twice in 2003, and his epic punt at the Miami Hurricanes that forced a fumble to give the Vols a huge 10-6 upset that year is the most memorable in history.

However, in the context of an entire game, this one against the South Carolina Gamecocks stood out. UT had gotten off to a 3-0 start and was coming off a huge 24-10 win over the Florida Gators. They were heading home and dealing with a bit of a hangover, and that hangover resulted in a horrendous performance this Saturday night against a well-coached Lou Holtz team.

South Carolina dominated the Vols in every statistical category here. They gained 100 more rushing yards, five more passing yards and had five more minutes in time of possession. The difference? Rocky Top dominated the field position battle thanks to Colquitt, who had four kicks go inside the 20-yard line, averaged nearly 52 yards a punt and nailed a 63-yarder.

Phillip Fulmer would later say nothing about this game was consistent except for punting. That allowed the Vols to get to overtime, where Casey Clausen hit James Banks with a game-winning fade to win. Colquitt wasn’t a factor in overtime, obviously, but his play in regulation was so elite to get the Vols there that he had to be on this list.

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