KNOXVILLE — Tennessee emphatically extended its winning streak against Kentucky to 24 games with a 28-10 victory at Neyland Stadium despite mediocre offensive production in the first half.
While the Volunteers (5-7) found enough rhythm offensively in the second half to give Phillip Fulmer a win in his final game as head coach for Tennessee, the Wildcats (6-6) foundered.
“They certainly came out in the second half and took it to us,” Kentucky coach Rich Brooks said. “They did some good things, and we played fairly well for 30 minutes.”
That wasn’t enough, though. After holding Tennessee to 76 yards in the first half, Kentucky buckled in the second half as the Vols pulled away with several big plays on the way to 311 total yards.
With a 7-3 lead, UT quarterback Jonathan Crompton found a wide-open Denarius Moore for a 63-yard touchdown completion on Tennessee’s third play from scrimmage in the second half.
Late in the third quarter, versatile sophomore safety Eric Berry dashed 23 yards, setting up Lennon Creer’s 5-yard run to the end zone to make it 21-3. Then the Vols added to the advantage midway through the fourth with Gerald Jones’ 2-yard touchdown sprint after he ran 55 yards to the Wildcats’ 1-yard line.
Meanwhile, Kentucky’s offense couldn’t equal UT’s second-half production. Kentucky freshman quarterback Randall Cobb from nearby Alcoa completed four of seven passes for 39 yards Saturday before being pulled in favor of sophomore Mike Hartline on the Wildcats’ second possession of the second half. Hartline was 5-of-7 for 74 yards through the air.
“They had eight or nine guys in the box, and there’s not much you can do with that but throw the ball, and we didn’t accomplish that tonight,” Cobb said. “We didn’t get anything done that we usually do.”
Tennessee led 7-3 at the half, though not without some help. Cornerback David Jones was called for pass interference on third-and-2 at the Wildcats’ 2 late in the half. The penalty, one of eight for Kentucky before the break, gave the Vols a new set of downs. They would need all of them before Jonathan Crompton pushed his way into the end zone on fourth-and-goal as time expired in the first half.
The Wildcats, who had 331 yards in a loss to Georgia earlier this month, were held to 193 on Saturday.
“You have to give a lot of credit to Tennessee,” Cobb said. “They came out ready to play tonight. Their defense got fired up. We started off strong, but like Coach has been saying, we haven’t had a game that we’ve played 60 minutes.”
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