Tennessee Vols: The story of the game that was lost due to fans throwing debris on field
The Tennessee Vols lost to Ole Miss on Saturday night in Neyland Stadium, but the story of the game wasn't the action on the field. At least not the football action. Fans showered the field with debris, resulting in an 18-minute delay. That's the lasting image from a wild game that culminated with a 31-26 […]
The Tennessee Vols lost to Ole Miss on Saturday night in Neyland Stadium, but the story of the game wasn't the action on the field.
At least not the football action.
Fans showered the field with debris, resulting in an 18-minute delay.
That's the lasting image from a wild game that culminated with a 31-26 Ole Miss win.
The story of the game, however, should've been the Vols' valiant attempt at a comeback win.
At one point, the Vols were down 24-9 in the first half. Tennessee outscored Ole Miss 17-7 in the final 31 minutes of the game.
And they did this despite being down their best offensive playmaker (running back Tiyon Evans, who didn't suit up) and their starting right tackle (Cade Mays, injured early in the game).
The Vols had a chance to leave Neyland with a victory. In the game's final moments, backup quarterback Joe Milton, who was forced into action after starting quarterback Hendon Hooker was injured on the game's final drive, missed a touchdown to wide receiver Cedric Tilman by inches.
The Vols were that close to winning the game.
A year ago, this game is probably over by halftime. At one point, it looked like Ole Miss was poised to go up 31-9 heading into halftime. But the Volunteers continued to fight, put some points on the board before the end of the first half (a 39-yard field goal), and scored on their first possession of the second half.
The story about the behavior of certain Vol fans is one story. But the other story is the fight and resolve of this Tennessee football team. Josh Heupel has this team believing. He has this team in a much better spot than it ever was under previous head coach Jeremy Pruitt.
That story needs to be told, too.
The players deserve it. Heupel deserves it. And the fans who have stuck by this program loyally for the last decade deserve it.
Featured image via Bryan Lynn-USA TODAY Sports
