Officials finally throw the Tennessee Vols a crumb in loss to Missouri
It was a very tough day for the Tennessee Volunteers in Columbia, MO on Saturday. Nothing much worked for the Vols in their 36-7 loss to the Tigers. The run defense was abysmal, the running game didn't work, and Joe Milton and the passing game were out of sync. However, late in the game, a […]
It was a very tough day for the Tennessee Volunteers in Columbia, MO on Saturday. Nothing much worked for the Vols in their 36-7 loss to the Tigers. The run defense was abysmal, the running game didn't work, and Joe Milton and the passing game were out of sync.
However, late in the game, a seemingly impossible trend that had handicapped the Vols for the better part of a month finally and mercifully came to an end. An SEC opponent was flagged for a live ball penalty (a penalty that occurred during the procession of play, rather than a pre-snap or post-play penalty, like a false start or a personal foul or unsportsmanlike conduct after a play) against Tennessee. Let the trumpets play and the heavens rejoice!
The first live ball penalty in 11 SEC quarters
The far, far, far overdue flag finally came flying in the fourth quarter, with Missouri holding a 22-7 lead. The Tigers were flagged for defensive pass interference, which gave the Vols a first down at the Tennessee 46-yard line. Of course, it came with the Tennessee facing a sizeable deficit.
It was the first live ball penalty in an SEC game since a holding call on Texas A&M in the final minutes of the Vols' 20-13 win. Two full SEC games and most of a third. In the interim, UConn was flagged for just three live ball penalties (two of them were accepted) during the Vols' 59-3 thrashing of the Huskies on November 4.
A nearly impossible streak of luck
During the course of any given college football games, there are potential infractions on many plays. The odds of an opponent not committing one during the course of 11 quarters in SEC play is extremely small. Basically impossible, realistically. And everyone saw that against Alabama and Kentucky with countless holds not being called. It's bizarre and patently unfair.
To be clear, it's not why Tennessee lost against Missouri. Anyone who watched the game knows that. But such a ridiculous streak is understandably very frustrating for Tennessee fans, and it's something that hopefully will not happen again anytime soon.
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