This was the game that Tennessee had been hoping for. The one that would finally justify the hiring of Dooley and show that in fact Tennessee was on the upswing. I mean after all we had one of the best quarterbacks in the nation as well as one of the top receivers and Georgia's style of play was catered more towards running which is something our defense was pretty good against. These all played into why I was actually pretty excited about this week's game. Plus it was a sellout. How much more could you ask for?
One of my friends, Andy was meeting me at my apartment and we had a friend who had docked at the Vol Navy whom we were going to go hang out with before the game. I had never actually been to the Vol Navy in the 24 years I had been a fan. Honestly it was a neat experience. Curtis had what I would call a decent sized boat. That was before I looked at it in context. Flanked by two 100 foot house boats this thing looked like a dingy. I was also impressed with how everyone in the Vol Navy worked together.
Curtis learned a valuable lesson. Don't park a small boat between two huge houseboats or you may die from a death pit of carbon monoxide.
Finally it was gametime. I snuck over into the student section to sit with some friends who had seats on about the 45 yard line. This was supposed to be a great place to be to watch Dooley get that first big win. Tennessee won the toss and I fully expected Tennessee to stop the Bulldogs and then go down and score to take the lead and it would be on from there. However that is not at all what happened. Tennessee kicked off to Georgia and then Georgia, led by Aaron Murray, went on a 15 play drive that took exactly 5 and a half years off the clock only to cap it off with a field goal. Tennessee then countered with their own 14 play to miss a field goal and with 2:44 left in the first quarter and Georgia ahead 3-0 I decided it was time for me to shave.
Georgia came out with a 10 play drive that ended in a punt this time and Tennessee was able to put together a drive that lasted seven minute and ended when Michael Parlady nailed a field goal. The scoring bonanza was in full swing with the score tied at 3. I could sorta feel however that Georgia was just ready to break the game open. Tennessee was really showing that they did have other weapons on offense with Mychael Rivera really stepping up and making some big plays, but there were multiple times when a Georgia reciever was about 40 yards down field behind everyone but Murray had just over thrown them. Georgia was able to drive down the field and knock through yet another field goal with only about a minute and a half left in the first half. I was really impressed with how the Vols were able to answer though, putting together a solid drive with Parlady putting up three points again as time expired in the first half. Tennessee was going to be getting the ball back in the second half tied with Georgia. I was liking our chances.
The halftime show was awful. It was a ripoff from The Wizard of Oz. The only good part was when the band made a tornado, which I thought would have been more appropriate for the game with Alabama.
Tennessee started the second half with a three and out, punted to Georgia, and Georgia needed only eight plays to put it into the endzone on a drive capped by an Isaiah Crowell run from a yard out. Tennessee was able to answer with a short possession ending with a Matt Darr punt that was downed at the Georgia seven yard line. Great special teams play led only to a defensive break down when letting Georgia recievers get past the secondary finally bit Tennessee. Murray found Mitchell for a huge gain on a post pattern and then two plays later Crowell was scampering into the endzone again from 17 yards out.
The teams exchanged punts until about 6 minutes left in the fourth. Bray was hurt on an earlier possession when his hand connected with a Georgia helmet, fracturing his thumb and bringing Matt Simms into the game. Amazingly Simms was able to lead Tennessee down the field fairly quickly and after a long 4th down conversion, Simms punched it in for a touchdown. Parlady proceeded to kick the extra point straight up the centers back end and the score stook at 20-12. The onside kick was a disaster but the defense stood tall and Tennessee would have one last chance, getting the ball back with 18 seconds left. The first play was an incomplete pass and the last play of the game was something Vol fans were very familiar with, Simms being sacked. These next three weeks could be really tough.
Alot of this lies ahead. Buckle down Simms. God speed.
No comments:
Post a Comment