Welcome back to the Odyssey. As always, you can click here to read all parts of the journey covered so far. Last time, we took a look at Oregon surviving a scare from their archrival Oregon State, keeping their slim National Championship hopes alive. Today we take a look at what many, including myself, see as the best game of the season and one of the best games of the 21st Century; Florida vs Tennessee.
Introduction: Winner Take All
It’s been mentioned, both on here and elsewhere, that Florida vs Tennessee held a lot of merit in the SEC East. The stakes of that game mattered despite being the first conference game for either opponent. However, when the game got delayed due to the September 11th attacks and subsequent cancellation of the next week’s games, the stakes were put slightly in doubt.
Tennessee lost the infamous “Hobnail Boot” game to Georgia, but Georgia ultimately fell in the SEC race after losses to Florida and Auburn. Tennessee remained unblemished the rest of their season heading into this game. Florida lost to Auburn the week prior to beating Georgia. However, like Tennessee, they remained unbeaten the rest of their schedule to that point; knocking off ranked South Carolina and Florida State coming into this showdown. That meant the winner of the game would advance to the SEC Championship Game.
The previous week’s result also raised the stakes for both teams. Due to their one loss records, they both found themselves at the top of the rankings coming into this matchup. Florida came into the game ranked #2 in the BCS standings. They could clinch a spot in the National Championship Game against in-state rival Miami with a win over Tennessee and winning the next week over LSU. Tennessee could get there as well, but they needed help. Sitting at #6, they needed to win out like Florida, but also needed Texas to lose their Big 12 Championship Game against Colorado. Despite their rankings being close, the line on this game closed at Florida by 17.5. As if Tennessee didn’t have enough to play for in this game.
Game Recap: Good Ole Rocky Swamp
The broadcast mentioned this would be a battle of the trenches, saying the defensive line play for both teams would help decide the game. The first two drives seem to show some truth to that statement. Florida received the opening kickoff and went three and out. The rushing attack for the Gators was lacking, primarily due to an injury to starter Earnest Graham during the Florida State game. After punting the ball to Tennessee, the Volunteers showed off their offense.
QB Casey Clausen marched his team down the field with a balanced attack. Clausen. Running backs Travis Stephens and Troy Fleming established the run for the Vols, and Clausen attacked in the passing game. He hit receivers Donte Stallworth and Bobby Graham along with tight end John Finlayson. Finally, Clausen hit Fleming out of the backfield for a two yard score, putting Tennessee on the board in the Swamp. The drive took over 7 minutes on the drive, helping limit the Florida offense’s opportunities.
The Tennessee defense stood tall once again. Reigning Outland Trophy Winner John Henderson got a hand on consecutive passes; the second being picked off by Jabari Greer. Florida almost returned the favor on the next play, but the Clausen pass fell incomplete. Florida almost got off the field, but a late hit on a Clausen third down scramble kept the drive alive. Clausen then hit Graham 24 yards down the field and Stephens took care of the rest. Stephens scored from six yards out to put the Vols up 14-0.
As the first quarter closed, Florida QB (and Heisman candidate) Rex Grossman found his groove getting the ball downfield. Grossman hit passes of 4, 7, 13, and 14 at the close of the quarter. On the opening play of the second, Grossman hit WR Reche Caldwell for 40 yards, putting Florida in a much needed scoring play. Grossman finished the drive himself, scoring a TD and giving the Swamp life for the first time on the afternoon.
Florida continued the momentum on the next play as a Clausen pass to TE Jason Witten was ripped out of Witten’s hands after he brought the ball in, which was recovered by Todd Johnson. However, the Tennessee defense held inside their own red zone, limiting Florida to just a FG on the drive. However, this was not the end of the “Witten’s Woes” portion of the program. On the ensuing drive, on a third down no less, Witten bobbled a pass from Clausen that landed in the hands of LB Mike Nattiel, who took it back to the Tennessee 22 yard line. Grossman hit Jabbar Gaffney across the middle for a TD to give Florida their first lead of the afternoon.
The Tennessee offense leaned on their Doak Walker Finalist Travis Stephens, and he delivered. On the first play of the second drive, Stephens took the ball 49 yards to put Tennessee in field goal range. However, after some incompletions (including a not great drop by Witten by the goal line) Vols K Alex Wells pushed his attempt wide to the left. Grossman tried to move his offense down the field (even leaving Kelvin Kight out to dry), while also leaving as little time for the Tennessee offense to respond. Gators K Jeff Chandler hit a FG as time wound down on the half, putting Florida up 20-14 at the half.
As the second half opened up, Casey Clausen and the Tennessee offense opened up. Clausen finally hit WRs Donte Stallworth and Kelley Washington down the field. That opened up the lanes for Travis Stephens, who powered the ball 35 yards the rest of the way. On that run, Stephens went over 100 yards for the afternoon, and gave the Volunteers the lead. The Florida offense responded in kind, as the rushing offense began to gain some traction. However, the Tennessee defensive line also got to Grossman twice for sacks, their first two of the game. The second sack forced Florida to kick a field goal, taking back the lead 23-21.
The defenses began to clamp down after those first successful drives of the second half. Lito Shepherd put his mark on the game, getting a pick from Clausen. He essentially stole the ball from Stallworth as the Vols were driving to retake the lead. The Volunteer defense would have its chance to respond. The first play they pressured Grossman to throw a lateral (which was missed by the officiating) but stood tall on a crucial 4th down. On 4th and 6 on the Tennessee 36, the Tennessee defensive line demolished the Florida OL and sacked Grossman. After an eventful beginning of the half, Florida entered the fourth still up two points.
Turning Point: Uneven Stephens
Travis Stephens had already asserted himself in the third quarter, but the fourth quarter is where he shone. After Clausen ran a bootleg on a crucial 4th and 1 conversion, he hit Stephens on a screen for 7 yards. On the ensuing play, Stephens bursts through the hole his OL gives for him and sprinted down the far sideline, getting the Vols at the 2 yard line. Jabari Davis went over the top from there to give Tennessee the lead. The lead remained at four as the two point conversion failed.
Grossman found a rhythm in the offense on the following drive. He hit passes to Caldwell (that was almost intercepted) and Gaffney for 45 yards. After a sack (that was this close to another fumble not called), Grossman struggled in finding his targets when he was in passing downs. Chandler, however, cut the Vols lead to one with a 52 yarder, pushing the game to 27-26.
Tennessee, with Stephens back in after his long run the previous drive, put an exclamation point on his day. Going through multiple Gator defenders, he ran the ball for 69 yards to put Tennessee in first and goal. Once again, Davis took over and got the remaining 9 yards, re-extending the Volunteers lead to 8 with less than 9 minutes to play.
After the two teams traded punts, Florida now had five minutes to get a touchdown and a two point conversion to save their season. They opened up their drive trying to empty their bag of tricks, where Caldwell hit RB Robert Gillespie on a double reverse. Grossman leaned on short passes to Caldwell and Gaffney, which got the Gators into the red zone. On second and goal he hit sophomore Carlos Perez on an out pattern. Perez dove into the endzone, giving Florida a chance to tie with 1:10 remaining.
On the try, once again the Tennessee defensive line got pressure. Also, the secondary held their coverage as a pass fell incomplete three feet away from Gaffney. Tennessee recovered the ensuing onside kick to essentially seal the game for the Vols. Tennessee won the game, and the SEC East, by a score of 34-32.
Player of the Game: Travis Stephens, RB Tennessee
Stephens was the easy choice here. His hard running got better as the game wore on. Clausen did a good job maintaining balance in the offense, finishing with 168 yards and a TD. However, the Vols do not win the game without Stephens. Stephens finished with a game high 226 yards and 2 TDs on the ground. He also added a couple of catches in passing attack. We mentioned that his long runs in the fourth quarter help set up touchdowns for the Vols. His hard runs in the first half helped wear down the Florida defensive line, which was expected to go toe to toe with Tennessee’s OL all afternoon. Stephens now had his team one win away from a potential National Championship appearance.
Look Ahead: Feels Like ’98
Tennessee had won in the Swamp for the first time since 1971. Tennessee was now heading to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game. The BCS Rankings on Sunday would determine their odds on making it to the National Championship. Tennessee accomplished the first part of their goal in making the National Championship, but still needed help from Colorado later that night. We will tackle that game next week on the Odyssey. Until then, sound off on the Rex Grossman era in Florida, Tennessee Football, and Spurrier Florida offenses down in the comments below!
