TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — For University of Tennessee fans, it turns out there were far worse things spiraling through the October air Saturday night than rumors of their beloved baseball coach leaving for a job in the major leagues.
A determined drive by the Volunteers late in the second quarter, the kind that had the makings of a statement answer to the nine quick points Alabama had posted to take a two-score lead, instead resulted in a nightmare scenario that extinguished any hope of preventing the Crimson Tide from extending their streak of home wins in the series to 11 straight.
Tennessee had weathered a rough start when it was outgained 114-40 in total yards (including minus-19 on the ground) in the first quarter and penalties piled up to halt promising possessions in a stretch of the second quarter.
All of which was just a single yard from being overcome by the almost certainty of trotting to the locker room at halftime having cut the deficit to a single possession.
The Vols had covered 74 yards in 15 gritty plays — converting two fourth downs and a third down — to reach the shadow of the Tide’s goal line. But on the drive’s 16th snap, disaster struck. The type of soul-sucking catastrophic calamity the Vols hadn’t experienced since the 2003 Georgia game when they were 1 yard from erasing a 13-7 deficit, only to have a fumble scooped up by Bulldogs safety Sean Jones and returned 92 yards as time expired on the first half for a back-breaking score.