Best play/drive

#2
#2
IMO,

The best play was the screen pass to Hayden against ND in 1991.

Close 2nd was Darrin Miller's int. return against Iowa in '87.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
#4
#4
The O-line opening up holes the size of the Grand Canyon against Arkansas's D after Stoerner's fumble.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 12 people
#5
#5
my life is young and my memory is even younger, so i say two plays in the 98 game. the qb falling and forgetting the ball on the ground or deon grant blocking the fg that same game (i was there). id say those were the best I know of for TN in my days
 
#8
#8
I'll get back to you after I've pored over a recap of every game in UT football history. Be patient. This is going to take some time.
 
#9
#9
The whole 2nd half and OT's of the '03 bama game. Also the goal line stand against Eddie George and Ohio St in the Citrus bowl in '96 I think.
 
#10
#10
In terms of historical significance, it would be hard to surpass Tee Martin's 79-touchdown pass to Peerless Price, which put the 1999 BCS National Championship game out of Florida State's reach.

For razzle dazzle, there was a play during the second half of the 1990 Florida game, which we led only 7-3 at halftime, but wound up winning 45-3. That game featured one of the most beautiful passes I have ever seen, an incredibly tight spiral that hit the receiver in stride, deep for a Tennessee touchdown. It was a pass thrown off of a reverse by tight end Von Reeves. See Packer: Pass put Reeves in UT history : govolsxtra.com.

For jawdropping athleticism, there was a successful two-point conversion attempt during the 1974 Clemson game which gave us a 29-28 victory. I attended that game as a freshman and it remains one of the most incredibly athletic plays that I have ever witnessed, one made by Condredge Holloway and Larry Sievers. Condredge retreated and reversed field back to the 19 yard line before heaving the ball deep into the back of the endzone, just as he was going down. Larry made a tremendous leaping catch to give us the victory. If you haven't seen this play before, fast-forward to the 5:25 mark of Tennessee Football - John Ward Announcer - Greatest Play Calls - YouTube.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
#11
#11
Best drive I've ever seen was against Arkansas in 1998 after "the fumble". I think it was about 6 plays of sheer physical domination between the tackles. Nothing but a road grader o-line and Travis Henry running downhill.
 
#12
#12
We will never know for sure. But that doesn't mean they don't know for sure.

"He did not cross the goal line,'' Wayne Grubb said Monday with finality.

"He didn't get across,'' confirmed Charles Severance, shaking his head.

Wait a minute.

Billy Cannon, if there was a replay camera at Shields-Watkins Field on Nov. 7, 1959, what would it show?

"Me going in, then coming back. Without a doubt.''

Pause. Smile. "In my mind.''

Cannon hasn't changed his mind in the nearly 52 years since the famous two-point conversion play went down.

In Tennessee, it's known simply as The Stop.

An underdog Tennessee team upset No. 1 LSU that afternoon, 14-13, by denying Cannon, the 1959 Heisman Trophy winner, on a two-point conversion run in the fourth quarter.

The principles in The Stop reunited Monday when Cannon, 74, came to speak to the Knoxville Quarterback Club. He regaled a crowd at Calhoun's, Neyland Stadium — as the scene of the crime is called these days — visible out the window.

While Cannon talked, grainy footage of LSU's touchdown and ensuing conversion played over and over on TV monitors over his shoulder. I watched it probably a dozen times.

LSU scores a touchdown to cut UT's lead to 14-13. The reigning national champs line up for the conversion to keep the title defense hopes alive.

Cannon is to the left, takes a handoff moving to his right and turns toward the goal line. He's met by Tennessee defenders, Severance high and Grubb low. Bill Majors also gets a piece. They go down at the goal line.

"I got that good lick on him,'' Severance said, "like a baseball bat. Wayne hit him down there around his feet.

"We hit him about the same time and drove him back. Majors came in just a little bit.''

The officials do not raise their hands to signal the conversion is good. The camera cuts to the scoreboard, showing it's still 14-13.

Sports Illustrated ran a photo of The Stop the following week. Bottom line, it's impossible to tell if the ball broke the plane of the goal line. Both sides can safely stick to their stories.

"We didn't play as well as I thought we could have,'' said Cannon. "Taking nothing away from Tennessee. They were a great little team that day.''

The Stop came exactly one week after Cannon's

most famous play, the 89-yard punt return on Halloween to beat Ole Miss 7-3.

The Vols, who had started the season with promise, didn't stop anyone else. They were outscored 71-7 in their three remaining games and finished 5-4-1.

Cannon was a physical marvel. He was the No. 1 draft pick who played 11 years in the AFL and NFL. During his offseasons he studied to become a dentist at the UT Med School in Memphis.

The College Football Hall of Fame elected him in 1983, then rescinded the honor when he went to prison for counterfeiting. He was re-elected in 2008.

Severance has gotten considerable mileage out of The Stop, attending several media events in Baton Rouge. He introduced Cannon on Monday, the old warriors clearly glad to see each other.

By now, it really doesn't matter if the officials got the call right in 1959.

But the events of that day do raise a relevant point.

LSU is coming to town Saturday, again ranked No. 1. The Vols again are a heavy underdog.

"That was a big disappointment for us,'' Cannon said, looking back over the decades. "We didn't play our 'A' game.

"In the Southeastern Conference you better play your 'A' game every day.''
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#14
#14
If Tennessee had won the game in the end, I would've picked the Travis Stephens catch and run for a TD in the 2001 UGA game. Start at the 2:00:00 mark. Just don't watch the end of the game.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrpN4c5OhIU[/youtube]
 
#15
#15
Stumbled and Fumbled - YouTube

It was Billy Ratliff that recovered the fumble. everyone should know that. Ah the good ole days.

Tee Martin, Travis Henry, Shawn Bryson, Travis Stephens, Jamal Lewis, Peerless Price, Donte Stallworth, Billy Ratliff, Raynoch Thompson, Al Wilson, Shaun Ellis, Will Overstreet, Andre Lott, Deon Grant, Cedrick Wilson, Dwayne Goodrich.

just sayin'

***** I MISS BEING UT!
 
#17
#17
Two plays from the Neyland era deserve special consideration: Hank Lauricella's 75-yard run against Texas in the 1951 Cotton Bowl and Johnny Butler's 56-yard touchdown run in the 1939 Alabama game, which Tennessee won 21-0. Lindsey Nelson described the latter run as "probably the most exciting run I ever saw." (See the 27:00 mark of 100 Years of Volunteers 1 - YouTube.) Butler's run was frequently used in movies for years thereafter, whenever a film clip of an exciting football play was desired. For the Lauricella run, fast-forward to the 41:30 mark of 100 Years of Volunteers 1 - YouTube.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
#18
#18
Volosaurus rex said:
Two plays from the Neyland era deserve special consideration: Hank Lauricella's 75-yard run against Texas in the 1951 Cotton Bowl and Johnny Butler's 56-yard touchdown run in the 1939 Alabama game, which Tennessee won 21-0. Lindsey Nelson described the latter run as "probably the most exciting run I ever saw." (See the 27:00 mark of 100 Years of Volunteers 1 - YouTube.) Butler's run was frequently used in movies for years thereafter, whenever a film clip of an exciting football play was desired. For the Lauricella run, fast-forward to the 41:30 mark of 100 Years of Volunteers 1 - YouTube.
Click to expand...

haha what a great link. thats for the refs!
 
#21
#21
I presume that you are referring to Carter's 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to open the second half of the 1990 Florida game. That play opened the flood gates for a very, very serious beat down of the Reptilian Horde. Forward to the 1:40 mark of 1990 Tennessee 45 Florida 3 (2nd Half) - YouTube. Incidentally, the Von Reeves option pass for a 47-yard touchdown to Carl Pickens, which travelled a good 48 yards on the fly, can be viewed at the 20:55 mark of 1990 Tennessee 45 Florida 3 (2nd Half) - YouTube.
 
Last edited:
#22
#22
Obsessedvol said:
I just wanna ask, what do you think is the best play and/or drive in Tennessee football history?
Click to expand...



I like the Mose Phillips screen play against U.S.C. during Johnny Majors last season. We ended in a tied game. Phillips ran around the defense and had 14 missed tackles. Yes, some of the U.S.C. defenders miss tackled him twice on that play.

Also, a little off subject, but have y'all noticed that we lost to Arkansas & Missouri during their inaugural seasons in the S.E.C. and we tied U.S.C. in their inaugural season??? You would have thought that we would have won all three of those games.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#23
#23
One of the most amazing I've ever seen was Mose Phillips run against South Carolina in 92, where he broke like 10 tackles on his way to the end zone. If we hadn't missed the 2 point conversion that followed that would be remembered as one of the greatest all time.
Posted via VolNation Mobile
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#24
#24
Travis Stephens breakaway run against Florida in 01. I can't even remember how many defenders he ran over on that one single play.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
New posts
You must log in or register to reply here.

VN Store



Back
Top