Tennessee Vols Vs. LSU Tigers: Will History Repeat Itself?
The Vols and Tigers have only played eight times in the last 20 years. As a matter of fact, the two teams have only faced off 30 times since 1925.
The Tigers have won four of the last six games, but going back to 1990, the series has been split at four wins each. Considering LSU's recent success, the Vols obviously dominated the early meetings, as Tennessee owns a 20-7-3 all-time record against LSU.
There's no doubt that when these two get together, the game will probably come down to the final possession. In six of the last eight times the teams have played, the average margin of victory is just six points.
Over the next few slides you will see some clips of the recent games in this series. You will see how nerve-racking this series has become.
You might just get a glimpse three days into the future as well. It's more than a little likely that Saturday night's game will be comparable to each of the fingernail-biting contests featured in this slideshow.
2000: LSU Upsets No. 11 Tennessee
1 of 6Unranked LSU had just lost to Alabama-Birmingham. SEC teams don't lose to Alabama-Birmingham. It just doesn't happen. But in 2000, it did.
It was Nick Saban's first season as the LSU head coach. The Tigers were fresh off a 3-8 season that ended with head coach Gerry DiNardo being fired before the final game.
The Vols should have handled the Tigers with relative ease, right? Wrong.
LSU held a commanding 24-6 lead early. In the fourth quarter, LSU led 31-15 before the Vols would make a furious comeback to tie it with just a minute and a half remaining.
LSU went on to win the game in overtime, though. It was Nick Saban's first signature win as an SEC head coach.
He's had a few more since then.
2001: LSU Upsets No. 2 Tennessee To Win the SEC Championship
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It was a game that Phillip Fulmer considers his most disappointing loss. LSU was ranked No. 21 after finishing the season with a four-game winning streak to get to 8-3.
Tennessee had just knocked off No. 2 Florida in the Swamp, for the first time ever. The Vols were riding high. A win over this lowly ranked LSU squad would land the Vols in the Rose Bowl to play the mighty Hurricanes of Miami for the BCS National Championship.
The Tigers scored first, but then the Vols scored 17 straight. LSU would kick a field goal just before the half to make it 17-10.
When starting quarterback Rohan Davey went down in the third quarter, Vols fans figured it was just a matter of time before they could begin passing out roses on the sideline.
At 17-16 going into the fourth quarter, things were starting to get a little anxious among the big orange faithful. When LSU's backup quarterback—and former minor league baseball player Matt Mauck scored on a 13-yard run to put the Tigers up 22-17, those same folks clad in orange and white were completely shocked.
All Tennessee could muster the rest of the evening was a field goal. A late touchdown for LSU would put it out of reach and the Vols suffered one of the more devastating upsets in Tennessee history, 31-20.
2005: Tennessee Storms Back for 30-27 Win
3 of 6The game was moved from Saturday to Monday due to Hurricane Rita, which came on the heels of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It was a rough time in the region. The energy in the stadium was unmatched throughout the first half.
LSU stormed out to a 21-0 lead. The opening drive resulted in a fumble by the Vols. One play later, LSU was in the end zone. There was even a three-yard interception return for a touchdown when Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge carelessly flung the ball from the back of his own end zone.
Midway through the third quarter, Tennessee made it 21-7, but LSU answered with a field goal to make it 24-7 just before the fourth quarter started.
The rest of the game belonged to Tennessee and the recently benched—and quite ticked—quarterback Rick Clausen, who would lead the Vols on a furious fourth quarter comeback. Tennessee tied the game with just two minutes remaining, sending the game into overtime.
LSU kicked a field goal in their portion of overtime.
When Tennessee's turn came, they ran the ball straight down LSU’s throat. Gerald Riggs's touchdown completed one of the greatest comebacks in Tennessee history, as the Vols won 30-27.
The quarterback controversy and inept offense would haunt the Vols the rest of the year, however, as Tennessee would finish under .500 for the first time since 1988.
2006: LSU Scores a Last Second Touchdown To Win in Knoxville
4 of 6With old offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe back with the Vols, Tennessee’s offense was greatly improved in 2006. The main problem for Tennessee in this early November matchup was an ankle injury to much-improved Vols quarterback, Erik Ainge.
Ainge started the game, but he ended up reinjuring his ankle early on in the contest.
Enter Jonathan Crompton.
The redshirt freshman showed glimpses of brilliance against the nation’s top-ranked defense, and the Vols actually led the game with less than a minute remaining. Had it not been for a terrible non-fumble call early in the final drive, Tennessee would have taken over at midfield and this one would have been over.
But it wasn’t meant to be.
After the missed call, LSU quarterback JaMarcus Russell would lead the Tigers down the field against former Tennessee and current LSU defensive coordinator John Chavis’s patented "third and Chavis" defense, and LSU scored the game-winning touchdown with nine seconds left on the clock to win the game, 28-24.
The loss ended No. 8 Tennessee’s shot at winning the SEC East.
2007: LSU Defeats Tennessee 21-14, To Win SEC Championship
5 of 6Tennessee won the East despite being thrashed 59-20 by Florida and 41-17 by Alabama. Based largely on the Vols 35-14 win over a very talented Georgia team and an multiple-overtime victory over Kentucky in Lexington, the Vols made it to Atlanta.
The game was much closer than many figured it would be. As a matter of fact, Tennessee led 14-13 with just over nine minutes remaining when LSU cornerback Jonathan Zenon returned an Erik Ainge interception 18 yards for the go-ahead touchdown.
Still, Tennessee was driving for the game-tying touchdown, deep in LSU territory, with just over two minutes to play. The Vols went from their own 33-yard line to the LSU 15 in just four plays.
The game was coming down to the final drive once again.
But the comeback would not be completed, as Erik Ainge continued his interception-prone ways versus LSU when Derry Beckwith picked off a pass at the LSU seven-yard line.
The Tigers made a couple of first downs, and the ballgame was over.
LSU went on to become the first two-loss team to win the BCS National Championship.
2010: Prediction, LSU 24, Tennessee 12
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Despite many "experts" saying that Tennessee has a chance to upset the Tigers this week, it's just not going to happen. Those "experts" are only picking that because they consider LSU the weakest team in the top 10.
LSU has struggled on offense about as much as Tennessee has. The Tigers have no passing game and the only time quarterback Jordan Jefferson looks halfway decent is when he runs the option, which—oddly enough—isn't called for as often as it should be.
The Tigers rank 115th out of 120 FBS teams in the passing game.
Tennessee, on the other hand, is better in the passing game, but ranks much lower in points scored and the running game.
It takes everything the Vols have, and more, to put together a decent drive in order to give the defense a breather. LSU's incredibly talented defense will benefit from the mistakes that this young Vols team is sure to make on special teams and on offense.
LSU will have a special teams touchdown and a short field set up by at least one Tennessee turnover. For the Vols, kicker Daniel Lincoln will have a pretty good day.
LSU puts it away, 24-12, on a late touchdown drive.
