Classic SEC Football: LSU Tops Tennessee in the 2001 SEC Championship Game

Every Friday, The SEC Blog will feature one classic game from the storied history of SEC football.

When former SEC commissioner Roy Kramer founded the SEC Championship Game in 1992, the biggest concern was whether or not the game would prevent SEC teams from winning the national championship.

Only once since its inception has it happened—the 2001 matchup between Tennessee and LSU.

Tennessee entered the game 10-1 and ranked No. 2 in the nation, and needed the win to clinch a spot in the Rose Bowl and a date with No. 1 Miami (Fla.). Meanwhile, No. 20 LSU was 8-3 and making its first appearance in the SEC Championship Game.

Things didn't start well for the Tigers. 

They dug themselves a 17-7 first-half hole, and starting quarterback Rohan Davey was lost for the game with an injury. That left 22-year-old freshman Matt Mauck, a former minor league baseball player, as LSU's quarterback for the rest of the game.

Mauck took charge, leading LSU on drives that resulted in three field goals to cut the lead to 17-16 at the start of the fourth quarter.

With 14:20 to play in the game, Mauck took off up-the-middle on a quarterback draw for a 13-yard touchdown. He then found Josh Reed for the two-point conversion to give the Tigers a 24-17 lead. 

Tennessee kicker Alex Walls kicked a 21-yard field goal to cut the lead to four, and Tennessee's defense then forced LSU to punt. However, Vol wide receiver Donte Stallworth fumbled on the LSU 35, giving the Tigers the ball back with a chance to ice the game.

Mauck led the Tigers on a six-minute drive, culminating with a Domanick Davis one-yard touchdown run with 2:16 to play to put the game away.

The loss knocked Tennessee out of the Rose Bowl and cost them a shot at the national championship.