Dawn of the Dawg
Fansided

Georgia football: 3 monumental wins against the Vols since 2000

By Payton Wilkerson

Richard LeCounte celebrates his interception.(Photo by Steve Limentani/ISI Photos/Getty Images).
Richard LeCounte celebrates his interception.(Photo by Steve Limentani/ISI Photos/Getty Images). /
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Georgia quarterback Quincy Carter looks to make a throw downfield against the Vols. (Mandatory Credit: Vincent Laforet /Allsport) /

2000: No. 19 Georgia football 21, No. 21 Tennessee 10

As mentioned earlier, from 1992-1999, Tennessee dominated Georgia. It was definitely more fun rooting for the Atlanta Braves during this time than Georgia football.

Coming into this game, Georgia had a 3-1 record, with wins over Georgia Southern, New Mexico State, and Arkansas. They were looking to beat Tennessee for the first time since 1988.

Tennessee came into this contest having lost to Florida and LSU. The Vols were only a couple of years removed from beating Florida State to win the Fiesta Bowl and the National Championship.

Despite their early-season struggles, they felt they could count on this game against Georgia as an easy win.

The Dawgs, however, had other plans.

The defense of Georgia, led by future NFL players Richard Seymour and Kendrell Bell, played exceptional, forcing three Tennessee turnovers and holding the Vols to 248 yards of total offense. On offense, Jasper Sanks and Musa Smith combined to rush for three touchdowns. Quarterback Quincy Carter also threw for 134 yards.

However, this game is remembered more for what happened after the game, as this was the first and last time Georgia fans rushed the field following a victory.

Barrett Sallee wrote an article about this on Bleacher Report if you want the in-depth scoop of what happened.

It actually got pretty ugly, as fans were beginning to hop on the field with time still on the clock in the fourth quarter. Referees were throwing flags for this, and Georgia players were pleading with fans to go back to their seats and get off the field.

In the end, they couldn’t help it, and fans were littered all over Sanford Stadium. Larry Munson famously said, “The Athletic department is about to lose $11,000!”

Well, according to Sallee, the AD lost well over $100,000 to repair damages on the field from this night. Even worse, a fan was critically injured during the chaos and had to get hospitalized. She would recover, thankfully.

After this incident, the University of Georgia has ensured that this would never happen again. It remains one of the only times in school history where fans have rushed the field following a Georgia victory.

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