Tennessee vs. Georgia: 10 things every fan needs to know about this rivalry
Tennessee and Georgia have been on a collision course for a few weeks now, as the Vols have continued to march through their SEC schedule and climbed in the rankings.
Georgia, as the defending national champion, is trying to hold off the upstart Vols and maintain its stranglehold on the SEC East.
Before we get to what is sure to be a classic edition of this storied Tennessee vs. Georgia rivalry, let’s take a look back through history at some of the key moments and tidbits that you should know about these two teams.
1. Not so fast, my friend …
It was over.
Georgia, ranked No. 25 in 2016, the first season of coach Kirby Smart’s tenure in Athens, had just connected on a 47-yard pass from freshman quarterback Jacob Eason to Riley Ridley with 10 seconds to go in the game. The Bulldogs were going to hang on for a 31-28 victory, a signature mark of Smart’s efforts to turn the program into a national power.
Cue Lee Corso: Not so fast, my friend.
In a finish that no one saw coming, Tennessee flipped the script with a 43-yard Hail Mary from Joshua Dobbs that was corralled in the end zone by Jauan Jennings. The Vols took a 34-31 lead as time expired, handing Georgia one of the more improbable losses it has suffered in recent memory.
It’s difficult to remember now, with Georgia as defending national champion and Tennessee trying to get back to the top, but the Vols were actually ranked No. 11 in this game and reached as high as No. 9 that season.
2. Georgia fans rush the field
This doesn’t happen at Sanford Stadium.
Whether it’s the fans, the security, or perhaps the hedges that have kept fans from taking over the Sanford Stadium turf, it has happened just once in the stadium’s history.
It was Oct. 7, 2000, and Georgia had lost nine straight games to Tennessee dating back to the 1988 season (the late coach Vince Dooley’s last with the program). No. 19 Georgia met No. 21 Tennessee with hopes of reversing the trend.
And reverse it they did.
Despite gaining just 280 yards of offense, Georgia notched a 21-10 victory over Tennessee to end the losing streak and begin its own run of 4 straight victories over the Vols.
3. The Vols snap Georgia’s 17-game home win streak
In 2004, Georgia had won four straight in the series with Tennessee and 17 straight home games overall. Coming into the game, the Bulldogs were ranked No. 3 in the country and had national title aspirations.
It was just like Tennessee to snatch away that hope.
The Vols held off a late rally by Georgia to pull off a 19-14 upset, handing the Bulldogs their first loss of the season. Georgia would go on to lose 1 more in the regular season to Auburn and play in the Outback Bowl, a familiar setting for a team that craved a place among the nation’s elite.
4. My God! Georgia beat Tennessee in Knoxville!
In the 1973 matchup, Georgia quarterback Andy Johnson failed to hand the ball off cleanly in the waning minutes of this game, putting the ball on the ground near the Tennessee end zone. Keeping his head, he picked up his own fumble and ran it in for an 8-yard touchdown that proved to be the game winner.
That was great. The call was better.
Georgia’s legendary play-by-play man, the late Larry Munson, made the game famous for his call: “My God! Georgia beat Tennessee in Knoxville!” It was one of his many calls that have gone down in Georgia and college football lore.
More on that soon.
5. Tennessee’s top-10 win on the path to the 1998 national title
Tennessee faced 6 ranked opponents in this legendary season, 4 of which were inside the top 10. One of these came on Oct. 10, when the Vols played No. 7 Georgia at Sanford Stadium.
Rather than being a classic nail-biter, this one wasn’t close.
The Vols shut down the Georgia offense to the tune of 3 points, won 22-3 and continued their trek to a national championship. They finished the year 13-0 with a 23-16 win over No. 2 Florida State in the Fiesta Bowl, the first-ever BCS National Championship game.
6. A freshman makes his mark
In another of Munson’s famous calls, the legend of freshman running back Herschel Walker began to take shape in Georgia’s 16-15 win over Tennessee in 1980.
On a particularly memorable play, Walker scored his first college touchdown, running over Tennessee defender Bill Bates. Munson’s famous gruff call has been immortalized for Georgia fans ever since.
“Oh, you Herschel Walker…”
7. The Hobnail Boot
It’s the most famous moment in the series’ history, encapsulated by another immortal Larry Munson call.
In coach Mark Richt’s first year as Georgia’s coach, the Bulldogs faced No. 6 Tennessee as an unranked heavy underdog. Instead, the Bulldogs picked up a 26-24 victory that is known best for the go-ahead touchdown that elicited an iconic call from Munson.
With just 6 seconds left on the clock, Georgia quarterback David Greene hit Verron Haynes for a touchdown to put the Bulldogs out in front.
“My God Almighty, did you see what he did? We just stepped on their face with a hobnail boot and broke their nose!”
Classic.
8. Different paths for the Dooleys
Both Tennessee and Georgia have been coached by members of the Dooley family, though one is far more successful than the other.
The late Vince Dooley, a legend in Georgia circles, coached the Bulldogs from 1964 to 1988, compiling 201 career victories, a national championship in 1980 and a 4-2-1 record in his career against the Vols.
His son, Derek, wasn’t quite as successful.
Derek Dooley coached the Vols from 2010-12, failed to record a winning season with a 32-41 overall record and never beat the Bulldogs.
The younger Dooley is currently in the Nick Saban Career Recovery Program as a senior offensive analyst at Alabama.
9. Tennessee has never lost six straight to the Dawgs
Georgia has recorded 5-game winning streaks 3 times in its history against Tennessee. The Bulldogs won 5 straight between 1909-1924, another 5 in a row in 2010-2014 and are in the midst of a 5-game streak that began in 2017.
In the current streak, in fact, Tennessee has failed to stay within 23 points of the Bulldogs. The average margin of victory for Georgia is 28.6.
Of note, though: The Bulldogs have never gotten to 6.
With a Top-5 matchup looming, Georgia will try to make its own history in this series while Tennessee tries to establish itself as the SEC frontrunner for the College Football Playoff.
10. There has never been a Top-5 matchup between the two teams
There have been plenty of high-ranking showdowns in this series.
No. 5 Georgia beat No. 8 Tennessee in 2005. No. 4 Tennessee beat No. 7 Georgia in 1998. Fourteen times overall out of 50 meetings, both teams have been ranked in the top 25.
Never, though, has there been a game in which both teams were ranked inside the Top 5.
Until now.
This year’s game is shaping up to be the most tightly contested and highly consequential matchup in the series history, with both teams undefeated and their eyes set on a national championship.