In what turned out to be a much tougher game than I wished for, the Volunteers were finally able to wrestle the Florida Gators into submission, achieving a hard-earned 23-17 overtime victory at Neyland Stadium. I have no idea why Tennessee ALWAYS has so much trouble defeating the Florida Gators, regardless of the coaches or talent on both teams. Something about that Gator orange and blue seems to distract the Vols from thoroughly thrashing those Gainesville reptiles. Nevertheless, the Big Orange managed to win a hard-fought battle and keep their SEC championship and NCAA playoff hopes alive for another week.
For all the hype about Tennessee’s spread, quick-pace offense, much of this game looked like it came straight from the 1960s, an old-fashioned slobber knocker! Both teams fielded crusty defenses and yards were hard to come by. Tennessee’s redshirt freshman quarterback, Nico Iamaleava, looked like a talented freshman, hitting some throws and missing others. For the game Nico was 16-26 for 169 yards and one interception. His Florida counterpart, Graham Mertz, was 11-15 for 125 yards and a touchdown. Whether it was the Vols 16 completions for 169 yards or Gators 11 completions for 125 yards, it was not a day when the long ball was a successful play. Both teams played conservatively in the first half, trying not to lose the game before they could win it. The halftime score of 3-0 in favor of the Gators made Volunteer fans anxious and some of us frustrated.
The second half produced more scoring for both teams. The Vols seemed to dominate the third quarter after falling behind 10-0. By the midpoint of the third quarter, the Tennessee offense found its rhythm and began rolling. By the end of the quarter, the Vols had tied the score and early in the fourth quarter the Big Orange took a 17-10 lead. While it was not a great lead, it was a touchdown lead and the Vols were seemingly on their way to putting some distance between themselves and those annoying Gators. Unfortunately, the Gators still had some bite in their game and tied the score with 0:29 seconds left in regulation, 17-17. The Vols could not get into field goal range, so off to overtime the game went.
Florida had the ball first and the Tennessee defense came to play. The Volunteers stuffed the Florida offense, pushing them out of reasonable field goal position. The Gators came up empty on their possession, leaving the Vols needing only a field goal to win the game. Tennessee would not settle for a field goal, with Dylan Sampson ending the contest with a 1-yard touchdown run. Final score, Vols 23 – Gators 16.
For the game, the Gators held the ball for almost 35 minutes leaving the Vols with only 25 minutes to play offense. Florida gained 361 total yards to Tennessee’s 312. Both teams had 6 penalties, both had a fumble, and both had an interception. Florida ran 72 plays and Tennessee ran 69. This is one game where the statistics reflect just how close the score was. Tennessee’s running back Dylan Sampson was magnificent, rushing for 112 yards and 3 touchdowns on 27 carries. Again, Tennessee’s punter, Jackson Ross, was a strong contributor to the Vols, punting 7 times and averaging over 45 yards per punt. Field position and a stingy Vol defense really mattered in holding the Gators to a low score.
With a Gator hide in hand, Tennessee moves on to battle the Red Elephants from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The last time the Crimson Tide visited Neyland Stadium, Nick Saban was the head football coach and the Vols pulled off an upset. This time, Coach Kalen DeBoer will lead the Tide into Knoxville. With both teams entering the game with a SEC loss, the loser of this game will be unable to win the SEC championship. While winning this game will not guarantee a conference championship, losing it will prevent it. So, in addition to the long-standing rivalry between these two teams, the stakes are high within the conference and for their NCAA playoff chances. Both teams have recently shown some vulnerability and inconsistency. I look forward to watching Tennessee capture a notable win for its season and move forward in its championship quest.