Tennessee vs. Georgia rivalry showdown lacking only one ingredient

Tennessee receiver Jauan Jennings is carried by teammates Kyle Phillips, right, and Charles Mosley after making a last-second touchdown catch on a Hail Mary pass from Josh Dobbs in the Vols' 34-31 win at Georgia in October 2016. While that was one of the highlights of his Vols career, Jennings is working to move past the low point — being kicked off the team last fall after posting a video of his profanity-laced tirade to social media. He was reinstated by new head coach Jeremy Pruitt this spring. Tennessee receiver Jauan Jennings is carried by teammates Kyle Phillips, right, and Charles Mosley after making a last-second touchdown catch on a Hail Mary pass from Josh Dobbs in the Vols' 34-31 win at Georgia in October 2016. While that was one of the highlights of his Vols career, Jennings is working to move past the low point — being kicked off the team last fall after posting a video of his profanity-laced tirade to social media. He was reinstated by new head coach Jeremy Pruitt this spring.

By David Cobb September 28, 2018 4 min read

KNOXVILLE – Two years ago, coach Butch Jones knelt with his headset in hands, seemingly in disbelief at the new summit his fourth Tennessee team just reached.

The Volunteers, courtesy of a last-second Hail Mary touchdown pass from Josh Dobbs to Jauan Jennings, had just beaten Georgia on the road to improve to 5-0 with victories over their top two SEC East foes in hand.

Two days later, voters in The Associated Press poll deemed Tennessee a top-10 program for the first time in a decade.

That moment, with Jones kneeling on the field at Sanford Stadium and a member of his security detail patting him on the back, soon faded from focus.

The Vols stumbled down the stretch in 2016, losing four of their final seven regular-season games. That day in Athens two years ago was the high-water mark of Jones’ five-year tenure.