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Tennessee football: 10 years Vols beat Alabama but not Kentucky

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 11: Detailed view of the checkered endzone at Neyland Stadium during a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Chattanooga Mocs on October 11, 2014 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 45-10. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 11: Detailed view of the checkered endzone at Neyland Stadium during a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Chattanooga Mocs on October 11, 2014 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 45-10. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee football is one of the top 10 college teams of the 1930s and 40s under coach Robert Neyland, right, at the College Football Hall of Fame.1strangeneylandhof
Tennessee football is one of the top 10 college teams of the 1930s and 40s under coach Robert Neyland, right, at the College Football Hall of Fame.1strangeneylandhof /

5. 1952

Tennessee: 15 Alabama: 0

On the heels of back to back national championships, Tennessee football dropped out of the rankings and was 2-1 thanks to a loss to the No. 10 ranked Duke Blue Devils in the second week of the season. Harold Drew’s No. 18 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide came to town at 4-0.

Thanks to an epic defensive performance, the Vols were clinging to a 6-0 lead heading into the fourth quarter. Then they broke it open with back to back touchdowns, putting a damper on Drew’s best season in Tuscaloosa.

Kentucky: 14 Tennessee: 14 (Tie)

Bear Bryant tied the Vols a few times but could not buy a win against Robert Neyland. This year, it was finally his turn to at least play spoiler, though. After beating Alabama, UT went on a roll and got to 7-1. The week before this game, they beat the No. 18 ranked Florida Gators.

Ranked No. 7, the unranked and 5-3-1 Kentucky team to Rocky Top. However, his guys were on a four-game winning streak, and they managed to tie the Vols, spoiling what would be Neyland’s final home game at a stadium that would eventually be named after him.

Result of the season

After tying Kentucky, UT went on to beat the Vanderbilt Commodores. They lost the Cotton Bowl to the Texas Longhorns, which would be Neyland’s last game. He retired afterward and took over as athletic director, but after back to back national titles, he had a solid finish in 1952, going 8-2-1 and finishing in the top 10, No. 8 in both polls to be exact.

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