KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Twenty-six.
That number needs little explanation for long-suffering Kentucky fans, who saw the Wildcats’ losing streak to border rival Tennessee extended by another year Saturday with a 24-14 loss at Neyland Stadium.
Freshman quarterback Tyler Bray threw for 354 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Volunteers, who continue to own the longest active winning streak in the nation over another FBS program. With the victory, Tennessee (6-6, 3-5) also earned bowl eligibility and likely passed Kentucky (6-6, 2-6) in the postseason pecking order.
The Cats appeared poised to drive a stake into the heart of the losing streak by marching 80 yards on 10 plays to score on their opening possession. Derrick Locke capped the impressive drive with a 17-yard touchdown run to give UK a 7-0 lead.
Kentucky was threatening to make it 14-0 on its next possession, grinding out 78 yards over 17 plays to reach first-and-goal at the Tennessee 1-yard line, but Locke fumbled the handoff exchange from quarterback Mike Hartline, and the Vols recovered in their own end zone.
Tennessee immediately responded to the second wind, driving 80 yards on six plays to score on an 11-yard pass from Bray to Gerald Jones.
A 12-yard pass from Bray to Denarius Moore, who had seven catches for 205 yards on the day, gave the Vols a 14-7 lead at halftime.
Kentucky tied the game at 14 with 10:10 left in the third quarter on a fourth-and-one touchdown pass from Mike Hartline to Tyler Robinson, but from that point forward the Cats could not avoid the type of mistakes which have plagued them so many times during the 26-game streak.
Tauren Poole’s 2-yard run capped a nine-play, 72-yard drive to give the Vols a 21-14 lead at the end of the third quarter.
In what is sure to be the most talked-about possession of the game, Kentucky reached the Tennessee 37-yard line on its first possession of the fourth quarter. After picking up eight yards on first down, the Cats blew major opportunities to extend the drive on the next two plays. On second down, Randall Cobb failed to see a streaking Chris Matthews wide open down the field for a potential touchdown out of the “Wildcat” formation. Instead, he threw incomplete on a short pass. And on third-and-two, Hartline threw behind Cobb who was wide open beyond the line to gain a first down.
Although UK has gambled all season long on fourth-and-short situations, the Cats elected to punt the ball away. Ryan Tydlacka’s kick, however, sailed into the end zone for a touchback and gave the Vols possession at the 20, a net gain of only 17.
The Vols turned that into an 11-play, 61-yard drive that culminated with Daniel Lincoln’s 36-yard field goal to make it 24-14 with 9:19 remaining.
Kentucky’s last hope ended when Hartline’s deep pass intended for Chris Matthews down the sideline was intercepted by the Vols with 4:55 to go. Tennessee was able to run out the clock on yet another victory over its rivals to the north.
