RockyTopTalk asks the question, "Is this really the worst team in Tennessee history?"Of course, there's good reason to ask. On Saturday, the Volunteers lost to Wyoming, which is -- sorry, Cowboys fans -- one of college football's worst teams this season. It was a paycheck game, and Homecoming in Neyland Stadium.
Among other things, Tennessee's struggle against the 'Pokes guarantees the Vols will have a losing record in 2008, and that Phillip Fulmer's final game as head coach will be in November rather than December or January. And considering their 3-7 overall record, with two conference games remaining, the pain might not be over yet.
RockyTopTalk dug into the record books and identified three Vol squads that could vie for the dubious distinction of being the worst ever to wear Tennessee orange. Those three squads:
1. 1962: 4-6-0
2. 1977: 4-7-0
3. 2008: 3-7-0 (so far)
The 2005 Vols, which finished with a losing overall record at 5-6, also deserve mention. They were the first team under Phillip Fulmer to miss a bowl game. Despite an upset victory at No. 3 LSU, which in many ways saved the season, they lost to Vanderbilt, which Fulmer infamously described as "hitting rock bottom." But in retrospect, Phil was getting ahead of himself. Rock bottom was three years into the future -- that cool Saturday evening when Wyoming left Rocky Top with both a paycheck and a victory.
The '08 Volunteers will, if they're lucky, only tie Johnny Majors' 1977 team which also lost seven games. But considering both Vanderbilt and Kentucky are much better teams than Wyoming -- both own winning overall records late in the season -- Tennessee could find themselves 3-9 for the first time since the pre-General Neyland days.
It'd be a sad epitaph for Fulmer's great career on Rocky Top. The '08 Vols still have something to play for: Phillip Fulmer's legacy.
