The Vanderbilt–Tennessee football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Tennessee Volunteers and Vanderbilt Commodores. They are both founding members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Vanderbilt and Tennessee have played 119 times since 1892. Tennessee leads the all-time series 79–33–5.
History
From 1892–1927, Vanderbilt went 19–2–3 against Tennessee. Tennessee's hiring of Robert Neyland in 1926 reversed completely the on field rivalry. Nathan Dougherty hired him with the explicit goal to "even the score with Vanderbilt." Vanderbilt's Dan McGugin (1904–17, 1919–34) was 13–8–3 all-time against the Vols.
Vanderbilt's longest win streak is 9 from 1901 to 1913. Tennessee's longest win streak is 22 from 1983 to 2004.
From 1928 to 2011, Tennessee went 71–9–2 against Vanderbilt. Since 2012, Tennessee leads 8–6 on the field.
An unofficial, exhibition game was played in 1918 between Vanderbilt and Student Army Training Corps, since Tennessee had officially suspended their football program due to Tennessee's coach and players participation in World War I.
Game results
Notable games
1892: The rivalry's first two games 1892 saw the first ever matchup between the Vanderbilt Commodores and the Tennessee Volunteers. The two schools played each other twice during the year; Vanderbilt won both games. On the first matchup; for the Volunteers it was their third ever game in the second season of play and their first season with more than one game. For the Commodores it was their seventh ever game and third season of play.
The first game was played in Nashville on October 21, 1892. The Volunteers only managed one score as the Commodores rolled to a 22–4 victory. The second game was played in Knoxville on November 17. The Vols did not manage a single score as Vanderbilt won 12–0. The captain of Vanderbilt was Elliott Jones and its quarterback was William E. Beard.
1900: Tie at Vanderbilt jubilee A game was played between the schools as part of Vanderbilt's celebrations surrounding its 25th anniversary. It ended a scoreless tie.
1902: Edgerton scores 1902 had one of Tennessee's strongest early elevens. Vanderbilt won 12–5 despite a weak line due to its running game. John Edgerton scored both Vanderbilt touchdowns. Tennessee's only score was provided by an A. H. Douglas run around right end, breaking two tackles and getting the touchdown. Nash Buckingham had a 40-yard run through the line. Jones Beene blocked and tackled well.
1908: Vandy wins despite Leach
1908 was a down year for Vanderbilt with a wealth of sophomores; guided by McGugin to its success. The Volunteers had compiled four wins in conference play. It was widely considered the best Tennessee football season up to that point. Vanderbilt won the match between the two schools 16–9.
Walker Leach made a 41-yard field goal to put the Vols up 4–0. "This seemed to arouse the local team" and Vanderbilt drove down the field for a touchdown. On a fake kick, Leach circled Vanderbilt's left end for 60 yards. Ray Morrison stopped him short of the goal. Nathan Dougherty was on Tennessee's squad.
1913: Tennessee mistakes help Vanderbilt Red Rainey scored Tennessee's touchdown. Goat Carroll missed the kick. Tennessee's right guard S. D. Bayer drew a 33-yard, half the distance to the goal penalty for slugging, and was ejected by umpire Bradley Walker. The first down after, Hord Boensch threw a touchdown pass to Enoch Brown. Brown ran the last ten yards shaking off several defenders. Boensch kicked goal and won the game for Vanderbilt.
1914: UT's first victory In 1914, Tennessee was undefeated Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) champions. It was the first championship of any kind for the Tennessee program. The 1914 Vols were retroactively awarded a national championship by 1st-N-Goal, though this remains largely unrecognized. Alonzo "Goat" Carroll scored all of Tennessee's points in the 16–14 victory, Tennessee's first over Vandy.
An account of the first touchdown reads, "Four minutes of play had barely drifted by when Tennessee's weird, mystic, elusive forward pass, May to Carroll, deadly in accuracy, went sailing home for the first touchdown of the game. The chesty Tennessee quarterback sent the oval whizzing for a distance of thirty-five yards and Carroll gathered in the ball near his goal line, when he hurried beneath the posts with all the speed at his command."
1916: UT surprises Tennessee upset Vanderbilt 10–6 in 1916. Vanderbilt's lone score came on a 70-yard run by Rabbit Curry. The year's only unanimous All-Southern Graham Vowell scored Tennessee's winning touchdown. Tennessee and Georgia Tech finished the season as conference co-champions.
1918: Exhibition In 1918, Vanderbilt beat Tennessee's SATC by what would've been its largest ever margin; 76–0. Grailey Berryhill scored six touchdowns.Russell, Fred, and Maxwell Edward Benson. Fifty Years of Vanderbilt Football. Nashville, Tennessee, 1938, p. 36 UT had suspended their football program for World War I, and the game was played by Student Army Training Corps. Tennessee does not officially recognize the game; however, Vanderbilt does.
1919: A tie in the rain A steady rain soaked spectators and both squads. The contest ended tied at three. Josh Cody scored on a 30-yard drop kick, while Buck Hatcher made a 25-yard drop kick.
1920: Vanderbilt avenges '16 on Waite Field In what was expected to be a hard match, the Commodores got vengeance for Curry, who died in aerial combat over France during the First World War, and lost to Tennessee on Waite Field in 1916, by netting a 20 to 0 victory at the Vols' home field. All three of Vandy's touchdowns were owed to passes from Jess Neely to Gink Hendrick.
1921: Kuhn acts as captain
The Vanderbilt Commodores went undefeated in 1921. Vanderbilt played the Tennessee Volunteers on a soggy Old Dudley Field, winning by a score of 14 to 0. Team captain Pink Wade did not play due to a case of lumbago. Acting as the captain in his absence, Doc Kuhn scored all of Vanderbilt's touchdowns. Fatty Lawrence also did not play in the game. Tennessee was excited for the game, preparing for weeks with new plays and persistent drilling. It was said Vanderbilt was "the one team that Tennessee enjoys defeating."Volunteer Yearbook 1922, p. 138
During the first quarter, an end run of about 20 yards from Kuhn first made the score 7–0. In the second, after the Commodores obtained good field position from the punt returns of Rupert Smith, Kuhn had a 30 or 35-yard touchdown run utilizing Lynn Bomar as a lead blocker.
At one point in the second half, Freddie "Froggie" Meiers carried an onside kick over for a touchdown, but it was called back. The Tennessee backs were repeatedly thrown for no gain or losses all game, and steady improvement from the Commodore eleven had been noticed.
1922: Vanderbilt triumphs at Shields–Watkins Field The Vanderbilt Commodores were undefeated conference champions in the first year of the Southern Conference. The Commodores beat Tennessee at Knoxville by a score of 14 to 6. The eighteenth meeting between Vanderbilt and Tennessee saw a packed stadium, the largest crowd of the season for Shields–Watkins Field."Vanderbilt Wins From Volunteers." The State [Columbia, South Carolina] November 5, 1922: 11. It was Vanderbilt's first game at the new stadium, which opened September 24, 1921.
Tennessee was out for revenge, as they had only beaten the Commodores twice, and Vanderbilt was ahead in points scored in the series by a vast margin, 347 to 53. Tennessee also hoped to better its Southern Conference record after having lost to Georgia. Both teams had last week rested their starters, Vanderbilt winning over Mercer, and Tennessee beating Mississippi by a score of 49 to 0. It was therefore thought the game should be a closer one than in years past, with Vanderbilt only slight favorites."Hard Contests Are Scheduled" The Lexington Herald November 6, 1922: 3. The game turned out to be hotly contested, so much so that many felt Vanderbilt was outplayed but not outfought. Perhaps the week off for many Commodore starters had hindered Vanderbilt's ability to play its best.
Tennessee drove down to the 7-yard line in the first quarter, but was held on downs. The first score came from Vanderbilt in the second quarter on a 31-yard touchdown pass from Jess Neely to Doc Kuhn. Wakefield kicked goal.
In the fourth quarter, Tennessee got to the 1-yard line after a series of long passes. Tennessee fullback Roe Campbell charged over the line for the touchdown. The Volunteers' Clayton failed to kick goal. Later in the fourth, Vanderbilt intercepted a Tennessee pass in Volunteer territory, leading to a chance to score. After runs at the line failed, a 5-yard pass from Neely to Lynn Bomar got the touchdown. Hek Wakefield's try was successful.The Volunteer Yearbook (1923) p. 110–111
Lynn Bomar, Scotty Neill, Gil Reese, and Fatty Lawrence were mentioned as the players of the game for the Commodores, and Campbell was cited as the star for the Volunteers. It was said Neill out-punted the Volunteers on nearly every occasion."Tennessee Fights Hard, but Loses to Vanderbilt." The Montgomery Advertiser November 5, 1922: 11. The Nashville Banner said Lawrence had been "in there doing a man's job blocking a kick and tackling with the deadliness of a tiger unleashed in a cave of lions."
1923: Vanderbilt unleashes pent up fury
After two undefeated seasons and a scoreless tie with Michigan, hopes were high going into the 1923 season. Michigan this year were national champions and edged out the Commodores 3–0. Vanderbilt then was upset by Texas. The week before the Tennessee game, Vanderbilt suffered a scoreless tie with Mississippi A&M in the rain. With a 51–7 victory over the Tennessee Volunteers the next week, the Commodores regained "all the power and smoothness with which it had started the 1923 season." Ralph McGill reflected the sentiment, "All the pent-up fury of misunderstanding and disappointment burst out like a flood. The Vols might as well have flung themselves in the way of a runaway train. It was a machine that found itself. The power was there and the Commodores took a fierce joy in using it." The Volunteers were led by M. B. Banks, in his third year as head coach.
Vanderbilt gained 455 yards of total offense. Gil Reese rushed for 214 yards, as well as 95 yards on punt returns. Reese scored five times, with touchdown runs of 70 yards, 45 yards, and 29 yards respectively. Red Rountree scored another, a 63-yard run. Captain Doc Kuhn got the other touchdown, and Wakefield made a drop kick. Lynn Bomar, Alf Sharpe, and Bob Rives on defense helped hold the Volunteers to only 7. With the win Vanderbilt was still a contender for the Southern title. J. G. Lowe played best for Tennessee, getting its lone touchdown.
1927: Dodson gets Neyland a tie
In 1927, two hall of fame coaches without a conference loss battle to a tie. Robert Neyland was hired to coach Tennessee in 1926 by Nathan Dougherty with the explicit goal to "even the score with Vanderbilt." 1927 is his first great team, tying with others as victors of the Southern Conference. Dan McGugin's Commodores led 7–0 until a late Dick Dodson run tied the score. "After the game McGugin questioned each of his players as to his whereabouts during the run. Without exception the players claimed that two men had blocked them. McGugin shrugged. "Well, we'll just protest the play. It's perfectly obvious that Tennessee had twenty-two men on the field."
1928: Vols pass to victory Tennessee remained undefeated on the season with a 6–0 victory over Vanderbilt; its first win in the series since 1916. Before 1928, Vanderbilt held a strong advantage over the Volunteers with a record of 18–2–3. Since 1928, Tennessee has dominated the rivalry.