Games to have back by Decade

#1
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IfDickeyStayed

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#1
If we could change the outcome of one game by decade, this would be the game, in my opinion. Beware its a long read:

1910s
1916 Tennessee vs Kentucky
-If the Vols win this game, we finish the season undefeated. This would have given Tennessee its second undefeated season in three years as well as made John Bender the fourth Tennessee coach to have an undefeated season. The vols would have retroactively claimed this season as national champions.
-Vols went 8-0-1 but could have gone 9-0 (SIAA Champs and claimed National Champs)

1920s
1927 Tennessee vs Vandy
-If the vols win this game, Neyland gets his first undefeated football season in Year 2. The Vol were already SoCon champs, but an undefeated season would’ve made the Vols unanimous national champions. No other teams were undefeated that year.
-Vols went 8-0-1 but could have gone 9-0 (SoCon Champs and claimed National Champs)

1930s
1939 Tennessee vs USC Rose Bowl
-If the vols win this game, Neyland gets his second consecutive undefeated season. The Vols win streak becomes 34 straight wins from 1937-1940. The Vols would have been the only other undefeated team in the country with Texas A&M. Tennessee would have rightfully claimed national champions this season and would have had a 3 peat of natties from 1938-1940.
-Vols went 10-1 but could have gone 11-0 (SEC Champs and claimed National Champs)

1940s
1940 Tennessee vs Boston College Sugar Bowl
-If the Vols win this game, Neyland has another shot at an undefeated season. The Vols would have been undefeated and would have had a unanimous retroactive claim to the national championship.
-Vols went 10-1 but could have gone 11-0 (SEC Champs and claimed National Champs)

1950s
1950 Tennessee vs MS State
-If the vols win this game, Neyland gets another undefeated season. The vols would have been the SEC champions instead of Kentucky and would have played OU in the Sugar Bowl instead of Texas in the Cotton Bowl. Kentucky beat OU in the Sugar Bowl that year and we beat Kentucky, so there is a great chance we would have won to be undefeated. Either way a perfect 11-0 record in the regular season would have given us a more stable claim than our current claim of national champs.
-Vols went 11-1 but could have gone 11-0 in the regular season and been AP champs before the bowl game (SEC Champs and Unanimous National Champs)

1960s
1967 Tennessee vs UCLA
-If the vols win this game, Dickey gets a unanimous national title in 1967. The Vols would have been the only team to have a perfect 10-0 regular season, making them the national champs in the final pre-bowl AP national champion ranking.
-Vols went 9-2 but could have gone 10-1 (SEC Champs and Unanimous National Champs)

1970s
1970 Tennessee vs Auburn
-If the vols win this game, we are undefeated in the regular season and win our 3rd SEC title in 4 years. We also would have played in the Orange Bowl against Nebraska for the AP national championship.
-This would also have given the Vols a conference title in every decade from 1910 to 2000.
-Vols went 11-1 but could have gone 11-0 regular season and played for the Natty in the Orange Bowl (SEC Champs and played in the Natty)

1980s
1989 Tennessee vs Alabama
-If the vols win this game, we finish the regular season undefeated and win the SEC outright. This would have placed us in the Sugar Bowl against Miami for the AP national championship. Also, would have given Johnny Majors his sole natty appearance at Tennessee.
-Vols went 11-1 but could have gone 11-0 in the regular season and played for the Natty in the Sugar Bowl (SEC Champs and played in the Natty)

1990s
Toss up: 1993 Tennessee vs Florida or 1995 Tennessee vs Florida
-If the vols win either of these games it’s the same outcome. A win in either of these games would have made the vols the SEC East champion and placed us in the SEC title game against teams we had already played earlier in the season. We would have been in the national title game season with a win vs Florida in both seasons. In 1993, Heath Shuler probably would have won the Heisman and in 1995 Peyton would have had a great shot at it with an undefeated pre bowl season and SEC title as a sophomore. I don’t think Tennessee would have won the national title in either season, but we would have won the SEC and played for the natty and possibly had a Heisman winner.
-1993 vols went 10-2 but could have gone 11-1 (SEC East title, played in SEC title, and played in Natty)
-1995 vols went 11-1 but could have gone 12-1 (SEC East title, played in SEC title, and played in Natty)

2000s
2001 Tennessee vs LSU SEC title game
-If the vols win this game, we are SEC champs and play for the national title against Miami. Tennessee would have won 3 out of 5 SEC titles, prevented Saban from winning one, and been in the BCS national title game for the second time in 5 years. The vols probably lose the natty but would have put Fulmer in a higher league of coach and given the Vols an SEC title in 3 straight decades as well as a conference title in every decade except the 70s stretching from the 1910s to the 2000s.
-Vols went 11-2 but could have gone 12-1 (SEC Champs and played in the Natty)

2010s
2015 Tennessee vs Florida
-If the Vols win this game, we win the SEC East and play in the SEC title for the first time in 8 years. The vols would have played a Bama team they barely lost to earlier in the season for the SEC title. This would have marked 3 straight decades of winning the East and playing in the SEC championship.
-Vols went 9-4 but could have gone 10-4 (SEC East Champs and played in SEC title)

2020s
2024 Tennessee vs Arkansas
-If the vols win this game, we would have finished the regular season 11-1 and played in the SEC championship against an injured Texas team. At worst, a loss to Texas in the SEC title game would have given the Vols Texas’s playoff schedule. This would have consisted of playing Clemson at home, Arizona State in the Peach Bowl, and Ohio State in the semis in Dallas.
-Vols went 10-3 but could have gone 11-2 (SEC title appearance and higher playoff seed)
 
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#7
#7
BernardKingGOAT said:
I would like to have the 1973 Georgia game back. If replay would have existed, we don't lose the 1987 Alabama game. How about the 2 ties in 1990, maybe our most talented roster ever. How about the ND loss in 2004?
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There are several Alabama games that gnaw at me.

James "Little Man" Stewart was a great player and he had a memorable career at Tennessee, but in back-to-back years, 1993 and 1994, he fumbled inside the 5 yard line during close games. He wasn't even hit on the 1993 fumble in Birmingham. He basically just dropped the ball in the middle of the play. We tied in 1993 17-17 and lost in 1994 17-13. We should have won both.

Also, the 1992 season would be remembered much differently, if we had just beaten Arkansas at home, like we should have. We botched an onside kick recovery late. Arkansas was not any good that year. They had already fired their head coach.
 
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#10
#10
RDU VOL#14 said:
Arkansas 2024 and USCjr 2022 are toss ups for me. However, I wonder if we get left out of CFP if Hooker is out in 2022 as 11-1 team in favor of TCU.
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The thing is that even if we won against South Carolina in 2022, we still wouldn't have played for the SEC title cause UGA won the East. If we had beat Arkansas in 2024, we would have been in the SEC title game with a good chance to win and a guaranteed playoff spot. I picked the 2024 Arkansas game because of the chance to play in Atlanta and the guaranteed playoff spot. Now if we had a shot to be in the 2022 playoffs at 11-1 with Hendon healthy, then that's the ideal pick cause we might've beaten UGA on a neutral site with a second look at their defense.

Overall, a 2022 11-1 Tennessee team with Hendon is the preference, but a 2024 11-1 Tennessee team is the one that really should have happened.
 
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#11
#11
BowlBrother85 said:
There are several Alabama games that gnaw at me.

James "Little Man" Stewart was a great player and he had a memorable career at Tennessee, but in back-to-back years, 1993 and 1994, he fumbled inside the 5 yard line during close games. He wasn't even hit on the 1993 fumble in Birmingham. He basically just dropped the ball in the middle of the play. We tied in 1993 17-17 and lost in 1994 17-13. We should have won both.

Also, the 1992 season would be remembered much differently, if we had just beaten Arkansas at home, like we should have. We botched an onside kick recovery late. Arkansas was not any good that year. They had already fired their head coach.
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Between 1990 and 1994, Tennessee should have gone 3-1 against Bama, with the only loss being in 1992. The fact that Majors found ways to lose to Bama in 1990 and 1991 is insane, given that we were clearly so much better. We played with our food too much in 1993 and didn't end the game when we should have. We could have won in 1992, but that Bama team was great, and they were destroying Shuler all day.

From 1990 to 2007, Tennessee should have won every game besides 1992. So frustrating
 
#19
#19
BernardKingGOAT said:
I would like to have the 1973 Georgia game back. If replay would have existed, we don't lose the 1987 Alabama game. How about the 2 ties in 1990, maybe our most talented roster ever. How about the ND loss in 2004?
Click to expand...
The Colorado tie pissed me off, but the Auburn tie… Someday maybe I’ll get over it, but I doubt it.

Beat ND in ‘90 and the National Championship would’ve remained a possibility.
 
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#20
#20
IfDickeyStayed said:
If we could change the outcome of one game by decade, this would be the game, in my opinion. Beware its a long read:

1910s
1916 Tennessee vs Kentucky
-If the Vols win this game, we finish the season undefeated. This would have given Tennessee its second undefeated season in three years as well as made John Bender the fourth Tennessee coach to have an undefeated season. The vols would have retroactively claimed this season as national champions.
-Vols went 8-0-1 but could have gone 9-0 (SIAA Champs and claimed National Champs)

1920s
1927 Tennessee vs Vandy
-If the vols win this game, Neyland gets his first undefeated football season in Year 2. The Vol were already SoCon champs, but an undefeated season would’ve made the Vols unanimous national champions. No other teams were undefeated that year.
-Vols went 8-0-1 but could have gone 9-0 (SoCon Champs and claimed National Champs)

1930s
1939 Tennessee vs USC Rose Bowl
-If the vols win this game, Neyland gets his second consecutive undefeated season. The Vols win streak becomes 34 straight wins from 1937-1940. The Vols would have been the only other undefeated team in the country with Texas A&M. Tennessee would have rightfully claimed national champions this season and would have had a 3 peat of natties from 1938-1940.
-Vols went 10-1 but could have gone 11-0 (SEC Champs and claimed National Champs)

1940s
1940 Tennessee vs Boston College Sugar Bowl
-If the Vols win this game, Neyland has another shot at an undefeated season. The Vols would have been undefeated and would have had a unanimous retroactive claim to the national championship.
-Vols went 10-1 but could have gone 11-0 (SEC Champs and claimed National Champs)

1950s
1950 Tennessee vs MS State
-If the vols win this game, Neyland gets another undefeated season. The vols would have been the SEC champions instead of Kentucky and would have played OU in the Sugar Bowl instead of Texas in the Cotton Bowl. Kentucky beat OU in the Sugar Bowl that year and we beat Kentucky, so there is a great chance we would have won to be undefeated. Either way a perfect 11-0 record in the regular season would have given us a more stable claim than our current claim of national champs.
-Vols went 11-1 but could have gone 11-0 in the regular season and been AP champs before the bowl game (SEC Champs and Unanimous National Champs)

1960s
1967 Tennessee vs UCLA
-If the vols win this game, Dickey gets a unanimous national title in 1967. The Vols would have been the only team to have a perfect 10-0 regular season, making them the national champs in the final pre-bowl AP national champion ranking.
-Vols went 9-2 but could have gone 10-1 (SEC Champs and Unanimous National Champs)

1970s
1970 Tennessee vs Auburn
-If the vols win this game, we are undefeated in the regular season and win our 3rd SEC title in 4 years. We also would have played in the Orange Bowl against Nebraska for the AP national championship.
-This would also have given the Vols a conference title in every decade from 1910 to 2000.
-Vols went 11-1 but could have gone 11-0 regular season and played for the Natty in the Orange Bowl (SEC Champs and played in the Natty)

1980s
1989 Tennessee vs Alabama
-If the vols win this game, we finish the regular season undefeated and win the SEC outright. This would have placed us in the Sugar Bowl against Miami for the AP national championship. Also, would have given Johnny Majors his sole natty appearance at Tennessee.
-Vols went 11-1 but could have gone 11-0 in the regular season and played for the Natty in the Sugar Bowl (SEC Champs and played in the Natty)

1990s
Toss up: 1993 Tennessee vs Florida or 1995 Tennessee vs Florida
-If the vols win either of these games it’s the same outcome. A win in either of these games would have made the vols the SEC East champion and placed us in the SEC title game against teams we had already played earlier in the season. We would have been in the national title game season with a win vs Florida in both seasons. In 1993, Heath Shuler probably would have won the Heisman and in 1995 Peyton would have had a great shot at it with an undefeated pre bowl season and SEC title as a sophomore. I don’t think Tennessee would have won the national title in either season, but we would have won the SEC and played for the natty and possibly had a Heisman winner.
-1993 vols went 10-2 but could have gone 11-1 (SEC East title, played in SEC title, and played in Natty)
-1995 vols went 11-1 but could have gone 12-1 (SEC East title, played in SEC title, and played in Natty)

2000s
2001 Tennessee vs LSU SEC title game
-If the vols win this game, we are SEC champs and play for the national title against Miami. Tennessee would have won 3 out of 5 SEC titles, prevented Saban from winning one, and been in the BCS national title game for the second time in 5 years. The vols probably lose the natty but would have put Fulmer in a higher league of coach and given the Vols an SEC title in 3 straight decades as well as a conference title in every decade except the 70s stretching from the 1910s to the 2000s.
-Vols went 11-2 but could have gone 12-1 (SEC Champs and played in the Natty)

2010s
2015 Tennessee vs Florida
-If the Vols win this game, we win the SEC East and play in the SEC title for the first time in 8 years. The vols would have played a Bama team they barely lost to earlier in the season for the SEC title. This would have marked 3 straight decades of winning the East and playing in the SEC championship.
-Vols went 9-4 but could have gone 10-4 (SEC East Champs and played in SEC title)

2020s
2024 Tennessee vs Arkansas
-If the vols win this game, we would have finished the regular season 11-1 and played in the SEC championship against an injured Texas team. At worst, a loss to Texas in the SEC title game would have given the Vols Texas’s playoff schedule. This would have consisted of playing Clemson at home, Arizona State in the Peach Bowl, and Ohio State in the semis in Dallas.
-Vols went 10-3 but could have gone 11-2 (SEC title appearance and higher playoff seed)
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IMG_8495.GIF
 
#23
#23
We had a tie in 1993 until the cheaters had to forfeit 2 years later giving us the 10th win so our postseason that year would have been affected by that tie. I would like to have that 1993 Bama game back more than any other game in the 90s. Everyone in the stadium knew David Palmer was going to keep the ball when he came in for the 2 point conversion and we stuffed the middle and let that idiot run wide. Thanks for ruining my day! Man I hate Alabama!
 
#25
#25
TheDirector said:
We had a tie in 1993 until the cheaters had to forfeit 2 years later giving us the 10th win so our postseason that year would have been affected by that tie. I would like to have that 1993 Bama game back more than any other game in the 90s. Everyone in the stadium knew David Palmer was going to keep the ball when he came in for the 2 point conversion and we stuffed the middle and let that idiot run wide. Thanks for ruining my day! Man I hate Alabama!
Click to expand...
Stevie Wonder knew Palmer was going to get the ball and run wide.
 
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