Tennessee football was not competitive in its last eight losses to Georgia ahead of its heartbreaking 44-41 overtime loss against the Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium Saturday afternoon.
That perhaps made the loss all the more heartbreaking as Tennessee jumped out to a 21-7 lead, responded after falling behind in the second half to take a 38-30 lead late in the fourth quarter and had a 43-yard field goal attempt to win in the game’s final seconds.
Tennessee had a multitude of chances to win but could never make the game-sealing play. After the game, Kirby Smart said the quiet part out loud.
“I’m really proud of this team. Tennessee deserved to win this game,” Smart told ESPN’s Holly Rowe. “We didn’t play our best game. I got a lot of respect for the way they play. But these kids I got never quit. They never quit.”
Midway through the third quarter, Georgia was in complete control and looked like they would relatively coast to the victory in the second half. But after Tennessee failed to cross midfield on five straight drives, its offense found like when it needed it most.
More From RTI: Everything Georgia Football Coach Kirby Smart Said After Beating Tennessee in Overtime
Chris Brazzell moss’d a Georgia defensive back on a 54-yard touchdown that gave Tennessee the lead in the third quarter. A 32-yard Braylon Staley touchdown gave Tennessee the lead then a Josh Josephs strip sack and Max Gilbert field goal put Tennessee up eight points in the fourth quarter.
But the Vols were unable to put the game away. Gunner Stockton found Landon Humphries for a 28-yard touchdown on fourth-and-seven with 2:32 to play. A strong drive moved Tennessee into field goal range but Gilbert pushed what would have been a game-deciding 43-yard field goal wide right.
“Just all in all, a great game. But I feel almost like we have to apologize,” Smart said in his postgame press conference. “I don’t think that we should have won that game, but they outplayed us in a lot of ways. But that’s the way it goes. I’ve had one against them about nine or 10 years ago that certainly didn’t go that way. So it comes and goes.”
Tennessee went three-and-out and Gilbert knocked in a 42-yard field goal in overtime before it took Georgia just three plays to score the game-winning touchdown in overtime.
The overtime victory marked Georgia’s ninth straight victory in the series with the Vols last win coming in 2016— Smart’s first season as head coach.
