Georgia Football: The history of Georgia vs. Tennessee

Georgia football plays Tennessee this Saturday. Throughout the preseason, this game was considered the de facto SEC East championship, but with the Vols’ losses to Florida, Alabama, and Missouri, that is no longer the case. However, this game still matters and is significant because Georgia’s CFP hopes are still on the line. The Dawgs are 10.5-point favorites on the road.

This will be the 53rd time these two programs have squared off. Georgia leads the series with 27 wins. The Vols have 23 wins all-time. There have been only two ties ever in this series. The first tie was in 1906, and the last was in 1968.

The series started in 1899 when the Vols won the first-ever match-up 5-0. The series did not resume until 1903 when Georgia returned the favor and won 5-0. Between 1899 and 1989, Georgia and Tennessee only faced each other 21 times. Since 1992, the Dawgs and Vols have played every year on an annual basis.

This game has never been played at a neutral site. The game has only been held in Athens and Knoxville. Tennessee owned the series for much of the 20th century. In fact, the Vols had a nine-game winning streak against the Dawgs that dated back to 1989. Then 2000, the Vols came into Athens and lost 21-10. That night is remembered fondly by many Georgia fans, but the highlight of the game was post-game. Fans stormed the field and tore down the goalpost. That is the last and only time the goalpost has been torn down inside Sanford Stadium.

Since that game in 2000, Georgia has owned the series. The Dawgs have won 16 times and have only lost to the Vols 6 times. Georgia comes to Knoxville with a 6-game winning streak, the longest the Dawgs have ever had against the Vols. The series’s longest win streak is nine, held by the Vols from 1989 to 1999.

This will be the latest the game has been played based on the date. The latest this series was played was on November 13th, 2021. I hate to bring this up, but this game is now where Georgia would take on Auburn. But, of course, Auburn had to cry and move the series to the start of October.

Many Georgia fans can hear some of Larry Munson’s greatest calls when reminiscing about the Georgia-Tennessee series. “My god, a freshman” and “Hobnail Boot” are probably the two most famous calls Munson ever had, and they were both during the Georgia vs. Tennessee game.

However, my personal favorite is Munson’s 2003 call of this game. Sean Jones picked up a fumble at the goal line and returned it for a 92-yard touchdown right before halftime. The Dawgs won that game 41-14, and that play changed the entire game. Munson’s call of the return is highly underrated, and very few know about it. But it is one of my favorites, so I am putting a link to it so you know what it sounded like. You are welcome! “Old lady lucky just laughed out loud.”

Hopefully, this game will not have an epic call with Georgia escaping the jaws of defeat. Las Vegas, however, thinks this game will be close, as the line is 10.5 points, favoring the Dawgs on the road. The Vols have played better at home than on the road. The Vols have a 14-game winning streak at home, and all three losses this season were on the road.

This game has many streaks on the line, as the Dawgs have the second-longest win streak in the SEC at 27. If the Dawgs were to beat the Vols, they would tie the SEC record with 28 wins in a row. Hopefully, the Vol’s home winning streak ends, and the Dawgs tie the record and try to break it against the hated “trade school on North Avenue.”