Tennessee let one slip away against South Carolina this past weekend in Columbia.

The Volunteers were a botched fourth-down play away from likely sealing the win against the Gamecocks, but a missed handoff by Tennessee quarterback George MacIntyre gave South Carolina another chance.

And the Gamecocks were able to take advantage of the opportunity.

Tennessee’s stunning 27-24 loss to South Carolina is one that will haunt the Vols for the rest of the season.

Despite what Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer said after the game — “We won the game tonight because we were the better football team” — most folks seem to agree that Tennessee was the better team on Saturday evening in Williams-Brice Stadium.

“Tennessee shot themselves in the foot over and over and over again with self-inflicted wounds (penalties) on offense,” said former Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray the day after the game. “Just basic stuff like not lining up correctly — covering up another person. It’s just the little details that cost them.

“Should Tennessee have won the football game? Probably. Is Tennessee, if you played this game 10 times, a better team? Yes, I think Tennessee is the better team. I just thought that South Carolina would win because of the fact [they were coming] off the bye week. … But I love the way Tennessee played in this game. I still think both these teams are contenders in the SEC — especially Tennessee, obviously with a little bit of a better record right now than South Carolina.”

The better team doesn’t always win — it’s why they play the games.

Tennessee’s loss to South Carolina wasn’t a situation where they were beat by the Gamecocks. It was 100 percent a case of Tennessee beating Tennessee.

There have been plenty of losses in the Josh Heupel era where Tennessee just wasn’t prepared the way they needed to be, and they were outclassed on the field. This wasn’t that — despite what Beamer or South Carolina fans may say. Deep down, they know South Carolina shouldn’t have won that game.

I know it, you know it, Aaron Murray knows it, and judging by the general reaction to the game, it seems that most folks around the country know it.

But a loss is a loss, so now the Vols likely need to win out to lock down a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff.