Just as the win column of the TSIO is streaky, so too is its national importance.
Back when it was first called that, when the Third Saturday in October came to mean more than just a day on the calendar, was one of those times of importance. 1939 was the year, and Robert Neyland was on top of the world. One of the best active coaches in the sport, he faced off that season against a #8 Bama team that had just beaten the Vols two years prior. It seemed to those watching that a lot was at stake. The Vols won handily, but the game got its name.
After that things went back and forth for a decade or so, perhaps the least streaky time in the series' history. Between '40 and '50, the Vols won four times, the Tide won four, and they tied twice.
Then it went back to streaky, with Neyland retiring from the field in '52 but Tennessee still dominating the 1950s, followed by Bear Bryant's arrival in Tuskaloosa in 1959 and the streak flip-flopping in his favor.
1940 to 1966 was a good example of, and partial explanation for, the streaks: over that roughly quarter-century, there were 12 games where one team or the other was ranked...but only two matches with both ranked.
BUT...
But there were two periods heavy on the ranked-vs-ranked matches: '67 to '79 had 7 such contests ... and '89 to '05 had 9 of them. Those were the Dickey-Battle versus Bryant, and the Majors-Fulmer versus rotating Bryant acolytes* years.
And that's when the TSIO rises to the same level of national awareness and importance as matches like Ohio State-Michigan, the Red River Rivalry, Army-Navy, the Iron Bowl, and so on. When two ranked teams are, more often than not, playing at the top of the sport.
We'll get back there. Soon. Knowing the streaky nature of TSIO, I'm not sure Bama will still be there to greet us, but we'll play them even if they suck. If they're good, it will become a nationally celebrated annual rivalry match again.
That's all it takes.
Go Vols!
* Curry, Stallings, Dubose, Franchione, Shula.
en.wikipedia.org
