Crimson Tide still undefeated after beating Vols 29-9

KNOXVILLE — So much for that sliver of momentum.

The University of Tennessee football team slipped back into offensive ineptitude Saturday night, and there were no defensive scores to save the Volunteers from a fifth loss in eight games.

“Rammer Jammer” filled a crimson-tinted Neyland Stadium as the final seconds ticked away in second-ranked Alabama’s 29-9 Southeastern Conference victory over the offensively challenged Vols.

“I can’t put 100 percent of a finger on it,” Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer said. “It’s like a dam ... and (the water) just keeps coming from somewhere else.”

UT (3-5, 1-4) is in danger of missing a bowl game for the second time in four years, but there might be more pressing concerns at this point.

The crowd voiced clear displeasure throughout another double-digit home loss to a conference rival. Cameras showed one orange-clad man wearing a bag on his head early in the fourth quarter. At that point, thousands of his fellow UT fans were already walking to their cars.

A 10th consecutive season will end short of an SEC championship for one of college football’s proudest and wealtiest programs.

Rivals continue to leave Neyland with victories, and fans continue to file out in frustration before the final whistle.

“We’re in a battle from top to bottom, whether it’s recruiting or whether it’s (other things),” Fulmer said. “Right now, I’m more worried about our football team, and winning four games and getting ourselves bowl-eligible and finishing up the season as good as we possibly can.

“That has the tendency to take care of a lot of things, when you win.”

And losing takes a toll.

“We need to be bowl-eligible, as far as this university is concerned,” senior offensive tackle Ramon Foster said.

The Vols had three possessions inside Alabama’s 35-yard line in the first two quarters, but two missed field-goal tries and several penalties left them down 13-3 at the break.

Daniel Lincoln’s second field-goal miss sailed wide left as the second quarter ended.

“There are certain plays in the game that can make a real difference, and you never know when they’re going to come,” UT junior tailback Montario Hardesty said. “I think we missed a couple of opportunities out there on the field, but at the same time, you’ve got to give Alabama credit for stepping up and stopping us.

“But we definitely made a couple of key mistakes in this game.”

The Crimson Tide slowly gained more separation in the third quarter, and the buzz slowly crept out of capacity-filled Neyland Stadium.

When Glen Coffee raced 3 yards around left end to give Alabama (8-0, 5-0) a 13-3 lead with less than three minutes left in the first half, the Vols had amassed just 40 yards of total offense and two first downs.

Two weeks after rushing for 1 yard on 15 carries at Georgia, the Vols had just 36 yards in 21 tries against the Tide.

“I don’t know where our running game has gone,” Fulmer said. “That’s disappointing as can be.”

The Tide won the opening toss, elected to receive and marched 50 yards in 11 plays to take an early lead on Leigh Tiffin’s 39-yard field goal.

UT took the ball at Alabama’s 5 minutes later after recovering Javier Arenas’ muffed punt, but the offense lost 9 yards before Lincoln’s 31-yard kick tied the score.

Moments later, though, Britton Colquitt — who boomed the 54-yard punt that Arenas fumbled — shanked a 22-yarder that helped Alabama retake the lead on Tiffin’s second field goal.

Arenas continued atoning for his early mistake with a 22-yard punt return early in the third quarter. Tiffin then added a 30-yard field goal to give Alabama a 16-3 advantage.

“I’ve never been prouder of our team, our players, (with) the way they competed in the game,” Tide coach Nick Saban said. “Tennessee’s got a good football team, and they played with a lot of heart and a lot of toughness out there.

“This is a great rivalry with great tradition with two outstanding universities, and I’m really proud the way our players played ... University of Alabama people can be proud not only of the game we played, but how we played it.”

UT, as expected, tried to create more big plays by giving super sophomore safety Eric Berry touches on offense and special teams.

Berry caught a 3-yard screen pass and returned kickoffs 21 and 11 yards in the first half. He ignited the home crowd midway through the third quarter by returning a Mark Ingram fumble to the end zone, but officials ruled Ingram down and confirmed the call after an instant-replay review.

“That’s what replay is for, but I didn’t think the ball was dead, either,” said Fulmer, who tried unsuccessfully to hide his frustration with a few calls. “But they’re the officials.”

Senior quarterback John Parker Wilson’s 1-yard touchdown sneak put the Tide up 22-3 late in the third quarter, and Roy Upchurch continued the rout with a 4-yard score early in the fourth.

Josh Briscoe took a middle screen pass 10 yards to give the Vols a touchdown with 7:26 left, but an offside penalty on fourth-and-4 kept Alabama on the field.

UT sophomore quarterback Nick Stephens hasn’t thrown an interception in four starts, but he didn’t made the big plays Fulmer said his team would need to win. Stephens completed 16 of 28 passes for 137 yards.

Wilson wasn’t spectacular, but he took care of the ball. That was all Alabama needed.

“The way our defense played tonight, if we just kept the ball and didn’t turn it over, we were going to win the game,” Wilson said.

The Vols travel to Williams-Brice Stadium next week to face South Carolina (5-3, 2-3), which didn’t play Saturday.

“I’ll be up. I’ll be ready,” Fulmer said. “This is disappointing. This is such a special rivalry game to all of us that been involved with it in different ways. It’s a special rivalry, and a very important game.

“But I’ll be back up.”