Tennessee football’s 10 wins vs. Georgia with both teams ranked

ATHENS, GA – OCTOBER 1: Members of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrate after the game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium on October 1, 2016 in Athens, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)

Oct. 1, 2016; Sanford Stadium; Athens, Ga.

Tennessee: No. 11 AP and Coaches
Georgia: No. 25 AP; No. 20 Coaches

Yes, the last time Tennessee football and the Georgia Bulldogs were both ranked also may have produced the greatest game in the series. It was the highest of highs for the Vols under Butch Jones, right before the program collapsed. UT was trying avoid a hangover after a huge 38-28 win over the Florida Gators the previous week, which ended an 11-game losing streak in the series.

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If the Vols won this game, they would be 5-0 and in the driver’s seat of the SEC East race with senior quarterback Joshua Dobbs at the helm. Georgia, meanwhile, was in its first year under head coach Kirby Smart. The Dawgs had gotten blown out by the Ole Miss Rebels 45-14 the week before but remained in the top 25.

With three double-digit comebacks already, no Vol fans panicked after UGA jumped out to a 17-0 first-half lead, even if this was a deficit on the road. Sure enough, while it took longer than usual, the Vols fought back and took a 28-24 lead thanks to a strip-sack by Derek Barnett that Corey Vereen recovered in the end zone.

After the Vols got a stop, they seemed in control and planned to run some clock and punt it. They did just that. Then the fun began. Jacob Eason found Riley Ridley for a Hail Mary touchdown with 10 seconds left to seemingly give the Dawgs a 31-28 win. However, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and a solid return by Evan Berry gave UT the ball with four seconds left at the UGA 43.

Dobbs heaved a desperate Hail Mary pass to Jauan Jennings, who came down with it as time expired. Tennessee football won 34-31. Things could not have been better on Rocky Top in that moment. However, what followed was a three-game losing streak and an epic collapse en route to a 4-8 2017 campaign that made everybody forget about this moment.