This has been a painful stretch for University of Tennessee football fans.
A stretch marked by the unknown and unfamiliar feelings of hopelessness. There are fewer UT fans squawking today than we can ever remember, and that is because there is precious little to squawk about. It’s a proud group that has been forced to bite their collective tongue far more than they would prefer.
Arkansas thumped the Volunteers 49-7 and finished three feet short of 500 yards of offense last week. It was not pretty for the Vols — although their new checkerboard sleeves were quite fetching — and it was far from surprising.
SEC thumpings have been as common as falling leaves the last six weeks for the Vols. The list of firsts this year is not good for a Tennessee fan. This is the school’s first 0-6 start in SEC play ever, and only one of those six SEC losses was by single digits.
A sweep of its final two games could get UT in a bowl game, but an 0-2 finish would result in the first eight-loss season in program history. And for the first time in a generation a season-ending sweep of Vanderbilt and Kentucky is not a foregone conclusion.