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Tennessee football vs. Ole Miss: Five reasons there’s bad blood between the schools

By Caleb Calhoun

Jul 20, 2021; Hoover, Alabama, USA; Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin speaks to the media during SEC Media Days at Hyatt Regency Birmingham. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 20, 2021; Hoover, Alabama, USA; Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin speaks to the media during SEC Media Days at Hyatt Regency Birmingham. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports /
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Tennessee freshman quarterback Peyton Manning talks with a coach on the sideline during a break in the action against Vanderbilt. Tennessee shattered one national record, three school records and earned a probable Gator Bowl bid in its 65-0 win over Vanderbilt at Dudley Field in Nashville on Nov. 26, 1994.94then11 071
Tennessee freshman quarterback Peyton Manning talks with a coach on the sideline during a break in the action against Vanderbilt. Tennessee shattered one national record, three school records and earned a probable Gator Bowl bid in its 65-0 win over Vanderbilt at Dudley Field in Nashville on Nov. 26, 1994.94then11 071 /

1. Peyton Manning commits to Tennessee

No recruiting heist in history was greater than the one Tennessee football pulled off in 1994. Phillip Fulmer, who was on the 1969 team and part of the whole “Archie Who?” phenomenon, managed to get the Ole Miss legend’s son to commit to Rocky Top with a lot of help from his offensive coordinator, David Cutcliffe.

Lots of things went into this. First, Manning’s older brother, Cooper Manning, tragically had to end his football career due to surgery from spinal stenosis. Cooper Manning was a wide receiver at Ole Miss at the time and had committed in 1992.

Also, during Manning’s recruitment, Ole Miss head coach Billy Brewer and athletic director Warner Alford were about to be fired due to recruiting violations, and Ole Miss was about to go on probation. Everybody knew it as well.

Then there were the needs of the Vols. Heath Shuler had just left early for the NFL, so Fulmer and Cutcliffe needed multiple quarterbacks on the roster for depth purposes. All of this led to them targeting Manning and trying to lure him away from Ole Miss.

In January of 1994, Peyton Manning chose the Vols over the Rebels. The backlash was fierce in Mississippi, to the point that Archie Manning, an Ole Miss legend, was asked to not stop by a regular gas station he would stop by on his trip from New Orleans to Oxford, Miss. for games.

Next. Vols' top 10 now defunct rivalries in history. dark

To make it hurt worse for Ole Miss, Peyton Manning became a Tennessee football legend on par with his father at Ole Miss. We all know that part. In 1996 and 1997, Manning actually got to play Ole Miss, winning 41-3 in Memphis and 31-17 in Knoxville respectively. Oh, and he turned out to be the best quarterback of all the Mannings  as well.

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