Instant Analysis: Florida-Tennessee

When the UCLA Bruins lost a game by 59 points back on Sept. 13, one had the creeping feeling that the 2008 edition of the Tennessee Volunteers wasn’t going to amount to much. After 60 minutes of football on Saturday afternoon in Knoxville, those feelings were confirmed.

There really isn’t much of a story to tell in the wake of this lopsided affair, because even when Florida has escaped Neyland Stadium with a win in the past, it’s never been terribly easy. On this day, however, the Gators cruised before a crowd of quiet and apprehensive orange-clad fans who had the gnawing feeling that their beloved Vols were going to be on the short side of a brutal bloodletting.

Yes, Tennessee fumbled and stumbled on a couple of possessions inside the Florida 5 in the second quarter, but even if the Vols had done something in those situations, the Gators—who already led by three possessions at the time—would still have held a commanding lead. After a quick 17-0 burst in the first quarter, fueled by excellence in all three phases of play, the Gators silenced the massive throng, psychologically wounding the deflated Vols in the process. With Tim Tebow’s steady leadership under center, the ferocity of a ballhawking defense that created an early fumble, and the kick-returning exploits of super speedster Brandon James, Florida established a 17-point bulge before anyone’s seat in Neyland had become appreciably warm. The rest, as they say, was history. Such a turn of events—in what has been a fierce and fascinating rivalry over the years—had to be shocking for any longtime observer of Southern football, but one could not deny the truth of the matter, hard as it might be for the reeling Volunteers to accept.

Florida stayed on track in the SEC race, but after just one conference collision, the Vols are a patient that’s in very critical condition. If substantial improvements aren’t made soon, this particular season could spin wildly out of control for Phil Fulmer and his ballclub.