Nightmare in Knoxville

SCOTT CAIN
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Almost as quickly as they buckled their chin straps, the Arkansas Razorbacks trailed 7-0.
Before Arkansas could muster 20 yards of offense, it trailed 14-0.
Before turnovers contributed to the mess, Arkansas had fallen behind 21-0.
Before Tennessee had run 20 plays, the Volunteers were up 28-0.
Before the almost predictable spate of injuries hit, the Razorbacks were reeling at 35-0.
And 81 seconds still remained in the first quarter.
If it had been a Little League game, the umpire would have invoked the mercy rule. Instead, Arkansas had to stick around for the rest of a 63-20 beating on a chilly Saturday before 107,262 fans at Neyland Stadium.
The largest crowd to watch an Arkansas team play witnessed the most points given up by a UA team since 1919, when Tulsa delivered a 63-7 loss.
"They were scoring so quick, I looked up and thought it was the end of the second quarter," Arkansas tailback Fred Talley said. "It was just the end of the first quarter."
Only Oklahoma (103-0) in 1918 and Wisconsin (64-7) in 1912 have scored more points against a Razorbacks team.
The opportunity existed to make it the second-highest score allowed in school history. Tennessee had a dropped pass in the end zone and missed a field goal on the same second-quarter drive, and Vols defensive backs missed interceptions twice that could have been returned for touchdowns early in the fourth quarter.
Tennessee reached 63 points with 4:20 left in the third quarter.
"I've never seen anything like it," Arkansas defensive tackle Sacha Lancaster said. "Everything that could go their way did go their way in the first quarter. Before we knew it, they tacked 35 on us."
Regardless of the margin, the loss did two things: It moved Arkansas (4-5, 1-5 SEC) one week closer to failing to qualify for a bowl, and it dropped the Hogs below .500 for the first time since Houston Nutt took over as coach three seasons ago.
Maybe part of the wipeout can be attributed to a revenge-minded Tennessee team that fell from the national title scene this time last year when it lost 28-24 in Fayetteville. That might explain the fake field goal that holder Seth Reagan ran in for a touchdown to make it 21-0 Saturday.
"I don't know if it was a message or not but they got us pretty good," Arkansas linebacker Quinton Caver said.
Moments earlier, Caver intercepted a pass and returned it to midfield, but it was called back because rover Corey Harris had jumped offside. Nutt said he thought Tennessee had gotten away with illegal motion on the play, a point he could be seen trying to make in animated fashion after the fake field goal.
"I saw the Arkansas coaching staff going crazy," Reagan said. "I thought they wanted a revote in Florida."
Tennessee outgained Arkansas 502-246, ran 30 more plays and held the ball almost 10 minutes longer than the Hogs. The Vols converted 11 of 18 third downs; the Hogs 0 of 9.
All of that came from a Tennessee offense that had scored just 66 points and averaged 283 yards in its previous four games.
"We talked about all during the week to start fast and play a full 60-minute football game," Vols Coach Phillip Fulmer said. "I think we started fast."
Arkansas' offense did its part to quicken the rampage by committing four turnovers that led to three UT touchdowns, including a 34-yard fumble return by defensive end DeAngelo Lloyd to make it 35-0.
"The first quarter was a blur," Vols tackle Michael Munoz said. "Everything was going right. You don't expect that to happen against an SEC team.
"Arkansas is a good defensive team and I never would have believed we would score 60 points on them. But once we got a lead, it was like an avalanche. It was almost like they didn't want to be out there anymore."
Tennessee (6-3, 3-3), which lost its first three conference games, became bowl-eligible and won its fourth consecutive game with true freshman quarterback Casey Clausen as a starter.
Determined to stop the run, the Razorbacks crowded the line and dared Clausen to throw. He barbecued the secondary for five touchdown passes, tying a school record.
As the defense became more pass-conscious, tailback Travis Henry started pounding. And punishing. He ran 25 times for 214 yards and 1 touchdown.
"Once we got their safeties backed up, I thought we could pretty much do anything we wanted to do," Vols offensive coordinator Randy Sanders said.
Henry ran over safety Ken Hamlin on one play and used his arm to jolt another defender to the ground on a 55-yard run.
"When Travis stiff-armed that guy, I knew it was going to be a long day for their defensive backs," Vols guard Toby Champion said. "After that, they didn't ever want to try to tackle him."
One thing: It wasn't a defensive back Henry leveled. It was 232-pound linebacker J.J. Jones.
If the loss itself wasn't bad enough, the season-long run of injuries continued with at least seven players going down. It started during warm-ups when punter Richie Butler strained his back.
Quarterback Robby Hampton had just recovered enough from a sprained shoulder so he could start Saturday after missing the Ole Miss game. He reinjured the shoulder with 2:11 left in the third quarter and the score already 63-20 when he was sacked by Vols backup linebacker Kevin Burnett.
Just as vulnerable was Arkansas' confidence.
After the Razorbacks' opening drive disintegrated, an ailing Butler hit a 35-yard line drive punt that Eric Parker returned 48 yards to the Arkansas 5-yard line. Three plays later, Clausen rolled out and lobbed a 2-yard pass to receiver David Martin when Hamlin pulled away from coverage presumably to try to tackle Clausen.
Like so many games this season, Arkansas looked powerless to mount a challenge.
"I thought at times they were still fighting," Nutt said of his players. "We'll have to watch the film tomorrow to see if [it was effort] all the way through."
Talley was among the fighters. Although he fumbled twice, one happened when he was giving extra effort at the goal line. He rushed for 142 yards and a touchdown. The Vols had allowed fewer than 50 yards rushing in each of their past three games.
Receiver Boo Williams caught 8 passes for 97 yards and 2 touchdowns, and Hampton completed 11 of 16 passes.
Any chance Arkansas had of willing its way back into the game ended after it had pulled within 35-14 on the Hampton-to-Williams passes.
The Razorbacks took possession with 3:04 left in the half. A touchdown drive would have cut the lead to 14 points and would have burned the clock, leaving Tennessee no time to score. Instead, the Hogs went backward 5 yards on first down, avoided an interception when Willie Miles dropped the ball on second down and went backward 7 yards on a fumbled shotgun snap on third down.
Butler's punt then went 38 yards and the return set up the Vols at the Arkansas 38-yard line.
Clausen worked his receivers on six consecutive plays to the outside to set up a 12-yard touchdown pass to the inside when Cedrick Wilson broke by cornerback D'Andre Berry on a slant.
Tennessee 42, Arkansas 14.
The band had barely begun to warm up for the halftime show.

This article was published on Sunday, November 12, 2000

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