Defensive Cats Enjoy Second Shutout Of The Season
Wildcats Stun Vols 7-(a
To JPin Bowl Berth
It had been eleven years since Kentucky had defeated Tennessee on the grid-iron. It had been thirteen years since Tennessee had been shut out on its home field. It has been 25 years since Kentucky has participated in a football bowl game. And it had been thirteen years since a Wildcat team had won as many as seven games in one season.
coach Fran Curci's daring Wildcats wiped out three of the streaks and are in the process of taking care of the fourth one next month when the Cats meet North Carolina in the Peach Bowl at Atlanta, Georgia.
With a defense that would make even the late Vince Lombardi smile, Kentucky slammed the door in Tennessee's face all day and made a big 62-yard pass play the difference in a 7-0 game Saturday afternoon before more than 80,000 fans in Knoxville.
While Tennessee fans outnumbered the Cat supporters, the Kentuckians clearly played the vocal role as the Big Orange fans had nothing to cheer about, with the exception of two goal line stands.
Not since Kentucky turned Tennessee back in 1964 by a 12-7 score in Knoxville, had the Wildcats been able to conquer the Big Orange. Today, however, it was all Big Blue.
It was a sad day for the Vols. They may have lost their coach, Bill Battle, in the process. Battle has been under fire the past three years and some observers contended that Battle would have to beat both Kentucky and Vanderbilt to retain his job.
What made the pill even more bitter to swallow was the shutout, the first since Ole Mississippi turned the trick in Knoxville back in 1964, the same year Kentucky last beat the Vols.
Tennessee entered the game as a solid seven-point favorite, mostly on the offensive show of quarterback Randy Wallace, back Stanley Morgan and receiver Larry Seivers.
Kentucky's defense was given little ink prior to the battle. The Cats' defense was furious, to say the least. After the sun had dropped over the Tennessee hills, the Vols were left with a palsy 166 yards total offense and only six first downs. The big Vol long-rifle fired blanks all day long, on the sidelines and on the field.
Meanwhile, Kentucky quarterback Derrick Ramsey led the Cat offense all over the field although Kentucky scored only once. By the game's end, Kentucky rolled up 457 yards total offense and seventeen first downs.
The winning score came on a pass from Ramsey to Greg Woods racing
out of the backfield. Woods pulled the pigskin out of the air at the Tennessee 45 and raced all the way for the score. John Pierce kicked the point after with 4:21 left in the first period, and little did the 80,000 fans realize it would be the only scoring of the afternoon.
Kentucky twice drove to inside the Tennessee three, but a fourth and one failed on one occasion and a 19-yard field goal try by Pierce was wide to the right in the closing seconds of the first half.
Tennessee, meanwhile, crossed midfield only twice the entire afternoon. Once the Volunteers punted from the Kentucky 39 and then late in the game, Tennessee punted from the Kentucky 47.
Kentucky's defense, with Mike Siganos turning in a super job on the Vols' Ail-American receiver Larry Seivers, smoothered the Vols all day long.
Jim Kovach had his usual super game with 12 tackles while Mike Martin had 11 and Bob Winkel, who hails from Tennessee, turned in 10 tackles including a sack on the quarterback for a ten-yard loss on the Vols' last offensive play of the game. Art Still and Jerry Blanton were super with nine and eight tackles respectively.
Kentucky fans were going wild the final six minutes when the Wildcat offense just streamrolled over the Vol defense.
With just two minutes remaining, Kentucky fans could wait no longer. They raced to the Tennessee section and reclaimed the old battered beer barrel which goes to the victor of the Kentucky-Tennessee game annually.
Tennessee fans, in shock the entire afternoon after the 62-yard pass play, began leaving the stadium as early as the beginning of the fourth period. But not the Kentucky fans. They stayed long and they gave the Wildcats all the backing they could ask for.
Coach Fran Curci, emotionally drained after the game, called it an increditable year and poured all the credit on "a great bunch of guys who refused to quit and overcame tremendous obstactles for this win."
Minutes later, UK President Otis Singletary and athletic director Cliff Hagan entered the dressing room to offer their congratulations and shortly after that, an invitation to play in the Peach Bowl was made.
A team vote wasn't even necessary. The dressing room was a wild affair. Football had returned to the University of Kentucky.