ATLANTA - For the first time in eight years, Tennessee should finish its season before Jan. 1.
Injuries decimated the Volunteers this year, with 18 starters missing 65 games. A three-game winning streak to end the season wasn't enough to secure a spot in a New Year's Day game; any Bowl Championship Series hopes were dashed with a 5-4 start.
Tennessee (8-4) plays No. 20 Maryland on Tuesday night in the Peach Bowl.
``Obviously, being at a program like Tennessee, you want to be playing for championships,'' linebacker Keyon Whiteside said. ``But the way we handled adversity this year, through the injuries we had, to end up in a nice bowl like the Peach Bowl, we couldn't be in a better predicament.''
The shuffling lineup has affected Whiteside as much as anyone. The team leader with 105 tackles, he started the year at middle linebacker, moved outside at the onset of the injury problems, then came back inside for the final three games.
Quarterback Casey Clausen missed 2.5 games with a sore shoulder, including a loss to Georgia, and leading rusher Cedric Houston was sidelined for four games with a thumb injury.
Both were back down the stretch, when Tennessee won its final three games.
``It's really a story of two seasons,'' coach Phillip Fulmer said. ``There's a lot of disappointment for everyone around our program for what was expected and what was accomplished.
``But I'm proud of these kids and how they've worked to get to this point. We've got the opportunity to win nine games, and there's a lot of folks out there that'd like to be where we are.''
Terrapins coach Ralph Friedgen is one of them. He's led Maryland to the first back-to-back 10-win seasons in school history and two straight bowl appearances, and a victory over Tennessee could propel the program a step further.
Maryland (10-3) hasn't been able to win any of their defining games in the past two years, losing to Florida last year in the Orange Bowl and getting blown out by Notre Dame in the season-opening Kickoff Classic.
They've also lost twice to Atlantic Coast Conference-foe Florida State.
``We keep coming up with these opportunities,'' Friedgen said. ``If we were fortunate enough to win, I think it would help not only our program but our whole way of thinking and how we view ourselves.''
Friedgen is one of them. A 1970 graduate of Maryland, he returned after 32 years as an assistant coach to try to resurrect the program. The Terrapins hadn't been to a bowl since 1990, and they were 5-6 the season before Friedgen took over.
In two years, the man affectionately called ``The Fridge'' is 20-5, including 13-3 in the ACC.
``It's a good feeling to go to two big bowl games and have two 10-win seasons,'' Maryland linebacker E.J. Henderson said. ``When I came to Maryland, one of my main reasons was to help turn the program around.
``I think we've accomplished that, but a victory in this game will make it a lot sweeter.''
It also would take away some of the sting from a 56-23 loss to the Gators last season in the Orange Bowl. A lack of experience, as much as anything, led to that poor performance.
``We had a lot of young kids then, and I also think we've increased our speed since that game,'' Friedgen said. ``We also have the experience now of playing in a bowl game. Last year, that was all new to us.
``I think our kids are excited about this challenge, and hopefully they'll rise to the occasion.''
Wednesday
April 24th, 2024
5:04AM
