Tennessee Volunteers most to blame for heartbreaking loss to Georgia

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Tennessee Volunteers most to blame for heartbreaking loss to Georgia

Shane Shoemaker, ClutchPoints · ClutchPoints

Mon, Sep 15, 2025 ·

4 min read

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The post Tennessee Volunteers most to blame for heartbreaking loss to Georgia appeared first on ClutchPoints .

One of the best games of college football's Week 3 slate — and perhaps of the entire season — came when No. 6 Georgia traveled to Neyland Stadium to face No. 15 Tennessee . The result was a 44-41 overtime thriller that unfortunately didn't go the Volunteers' (2-1) way.

The win for the Bulldogs (3-0) marked their ninth straight over Tennessee, making the loss sting even more given how the game unfolded. Even Georgia head coach Kirby Smart admitted afterward that it felt like the Vols had the upper hand for much of the night.

"I feel almost like we have to apologize," Smart said, per ESPN. "I don't think that we should have won that game. I thought (Tennessee) outplayed us in a lot of ways."

Tennessee took an eight-point lead with 6:40 remaining in the fourth quarter, but Georgia responded by marching 75 yards in nine plays to reach the end zone and convert a two-point try to tie the game. With just over two and a half minutes left, the Vols mounted an impressive drive of their own, moving 50 yards in 14 plays and draining the clock to set up what looked to be a game-winning field goal.

That never happened.

Max Gilbert misses the most important kick

© Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Overall, Max Gilbert had a solid day for the Vols. The sophomore kicker went 2-for-3 on field goals, accounting for 11 total points. His first came in the fourth quarter when he drilled a 48-yarder to extend Tennessee's lead to eight. He later added a 42-yard kick in overtime to briefly give the Vols the advantage once again.

But when it mattered most, Gilbert couldn't deliver. After the Tennessee offense bled the clock down to just seven seconds, they set up a 43-yard attempt for the win in the fourth. Instead, Gilbert pushed the kick wide right, and all the momentum that had built inside Neyland Stadium evaporated.

"End of the day, coaches and players have got to be a little bit better to win that football game," Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said, per Chattanooga Times Free Press Stephen Hargis. "Losing never feels good or tastes good. That's not the expectation inside this locker room, just to play somebody tight.

"As a specialist, sometimes your life gets showcased in a way where you get very limited opportunities. I love the fact (Gilbert) comes back in overtime and drained it. Unfortunately, he didn't make the one before, but he had his head high. It's the life of being a kicker. He'll continue to grow, and we have great trust in him. Unfortunately we didn't finish that one."

Gilbert had been perfect on the season entering Saturday, connecting on all five of his attempts. That made the miss sting even worse, as his first failed kick of 2025 ultimately sealed Tennessee's heartbreaking loss.

Procedure penalties are an issue for Tennessee

All the momentum appeared to be heading Tennessee's way in the fourth quarter. After going up by five early in the period, the Vols' defense came up big on Georgia's ensuing drive. Josuah Josephs delivered a strip sack on quarterback Gunner Stockton that looked like it might put the game out of reach.

But on the very first play of the next possession, a Sam Pendleton false start pushed Tennessee back five yards to the Georgia 39. The Vols still came away with a Gilbert field goal, but it felt like they had left more points on the field. It also wasn't the only false start that proved costly.

On Tennessee's final drive of regulation, which ended with Gilbert's miss, a methodical march stalled after yet another false start. It was only five yards, but it undoubtedly factored into the difficulty of Gilbert's attempt on the very next play.

Josh Heupel is still proving it's tough to beat top SEC foes

While Josh Heupel has restored relevance to the Tennessee football program during his five years in Knoxville, he still struggles with what his predecessors couldn't do either: beat SEC rivals.

His loss to Georgia in Week 3 dropped him to 0-5 against Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs and nine straight overall. Heupel is 2-2 against Florida but has never led the Vols to a victory at The Swamp. Against Alabama , he's also 2-2, with both losses coming in Tuscaloosa.

Although it doesn't necessarily apply here, one of Heupel's biggest shortcomings has been winning on the road, especially when it's against SEC foes. He has often benefitted from the raucous crowds at Neyland Stadium, but he has yet to find that same success away from home. On Saturday, Tennessee did what it has so often under Heupel—fold in the biggest moments. Only this time it was on Rocky Top.

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