Tennessee Still One to Beat

For an undefeated team, the Tennessee Volunteers sure do lose a lot.

They lost running back Jamal Lewis when he tore a knee ligament in the fourth game of the season. They lost linebacker Al Wilson for two games because of a groin injury. This week, they found out they will be losing a coach; offensive coordinator David Cutliffe will leave after today’s Southeastern Conference title game to replace Tommy Tuberville as head coach at Mississippi.

So far, nothing has prevented the Volunteers (11-0) from winning games. It appears they can even afford to lose a little ground in the bowl championship series rankings and still go to the Fiesta Bowl. They hold the top spot in the BCS. If a victory over Mississippi State (8-3) in the Georgia Dome tonight somehow turns off the voters or doesn’t create the right numbers in the BCS computer, a slip to No. 2 still would allow the Volunteers to play in Tempe, Ariz., on Jan. 4.

Mississippi State’s goal isn’t quite as lofty. The Bulldogs hope to gain a spot in one of the upper-tier bowls with a victory. That still would represent quite an accomplishment for a team that wasn’t picked to play in January before the season, and had to come from outside down the stretch just to get to today’s game.

But they beat Arkansas when Scott Hazelwood kicked a field goal with seven seconds left, then they took care of Mississippi last week.

“You shouldn’t underestimate anybody,” Mississippi State defensive end Edward Smith said. “We set our goals pretty high. It’s all happened for us so far. We deserve every bit of it.”

The Bulldogs might have to go without the SEC’s leading rusher, James Johnson, who is questionable because of a groin injury.

His absence would make it that much more challenging for Mississippi State to score against a defense that gives up 14.5 points a game.

Johnson might be tougher to replace than Tennessee’s Peyton Manning. Manning rewrote the school’s record books, but he never guided the team to an 11-0 record, as junior quarterback Tee Martin has. He struggled at times while adjusting to his new role as the man, but never so badly that he cost the team a game. It didn’t hurt that Martin had Manning’s cast of great receivers, including Peerless Price and Cedrick Wilson.

Where is the UCLA angle in this game? Besides the obvious--a Tennessee loss coupled with a UCLA victory in Miami would guarantee a Fiesta Bowl berth for the Bruins--there’s the Syracuse factor.

Syracuse pounded Miami, 66-13, last week, which ought to make the Hurricanes extra angry when they take the field today and also would make a shaky victory by UCLA look even more suspect.

The Orangemen didn’t do UCLA any favors there. They also could have placed the Fiesta Bowl fate entirely in the Bruins’ hands had they simply held onto the lead in their season-opening game against Tennessee. But Martin drove the team downfield in the final minute and the Volunteers won on a final-second field goal, 34-33.