Alabama vs. Tennessee: Remember the 2009 Brush with Disaster

2009: Tennessee Kicker Daniel Lincoln lines up for the game-winning field goal.  He lets it loose. Something goes wrong, chaos erupts.  Suddenly, a 360-pound man is running around screaming, his helmet flying through the air.

That was the year Tennessee traveled to undefeated Alabama's house, a heavily favored opponent, and almost came away with the upset of the year.

There is an argument about who really won us that game.  Was it Terrence Cody and his two blocked field goals or Leigh Tiffin, who scored all 12 of the Tide's points that night?  It's a silly argument, as the whole team won that game.  

It was a game where Tennessee dominated Alabama in many aspects, except in the "Win" column.  

Tennessee had 20 first downs to Alabama's 16, 339 yards of offense to their 265 and the Vol's held onto the ball for 32 of the 60 minutes.  Both teams attempted the same amount of field goals, with four.  Leigh Tiffin hit all of his, while Daniel Lincoln missed three.  

The Third Saturday in October has been a unheralded event for complacent Tide fans these past few years.  Ever since John Parker Wilson and the Tide thumped Tennessee 29-9 in 2008, this game just hasn't seemed as big a deal as it was to Bear Bryant.  Everybody has been whipped into a frenzy over the 'Bama-LSU game.  

Everybody but Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide, that is.

This year's showdown against Tennessee is eerily familiar.  They are underdogs, they are traveling to Tuscaloosa and they face one of the best—if not the best—defenses in college football.  

It's a game that far too many are underestimating.  Bear Bryant would have a conniption fit if he heard some of the things being said about how 'Bama is going to run over Tennessee.  Wait until after the game to say that Alabama ran over Tennessee, okay?

Tennessee's backup quarterback, Matt Simms (son of Super Bowl MVP, Phil Simms) is regarded as a bust.  He can't play quarterback in the SEC or so many are saying.  

The general consensus is that Vol's running back Tauren Poole just can't dominate enough on the ground to beat the Tide, even though he ran for over 100 yards against them last year.   

This is college football and this is the SEC.  To think any game is a "gimme" is to watch your opponent celebrate when the clock hits zero.  

The Third Saturday in October is a grand, historic rivalry and Alabama is fighting tooth and nail right now to keep it in tact against the would-be usurpers, the Missouri Tigers.

Beating Tennessee meant a whole lot to Bear Bryant before he even started coaching for Alabama.  As a coach, Bryant never defeated Tennessee's coach, General Robert Neyland.

He said this of Neyland, "Everyone thinks I'm the best damn coach in the country.  But he taught me everything I know.  I never beat him, but I learned a lot from playing him."

Legend has it that the Bear was incredibly relieved when Neyland retired.  

Alabama fans will tell you that Paul "Bear" Bryant was the greatest college football coach ever, whereas Tennessee fans will tell you it's General Robert Neyland.

This great rivalry is in danger of dying with the conference changes going around, but it continues tonight at 6:15 p.m. Central.  

It's the Third Saturday in October and Tennessee cannot be overlooked.  Let's not have another 2009 heart-stopper.