Georgia-Tennessee. 1980.
Mix those words together, and your first thought is probably either Herschel Walker’s debut, his trucking over of Bill Bates, or the late Larry Munson exclaiming, “My God, A Freshman!”
Even if you were not alive then, you have a vivid memory of it based on the highlights of that iconic radio call, a greater necessity since this was the time when not every game was broadcast on TV.
Such was the case on that humid September night in 1980 in front of more than 92,000 fans, then
a record for the largest crowd to see a college football game in the south.
But like many classic Georgia wins, the 16-15 triumph does not happen without unsung heroes, and this one is no exception.
To say the first half started rough for Georgia would be putting it mildly. The Bulldogs trailed 15-0, battling through all sorts of adversity as the offense could not get much going early, managing 96 first-half offensive yards.
“We had trouble early, we decided to send in the plays from the sidelines rather than use signals, and I know that cost us a few delay of game penalties,” Georgia head coach Vince Dooley told media after the game. “We had an exchange problem early, and all three times it was with the same play.”
Not only that, but injuries leading into the game flushed two walk-ons into key roles on special teams in Jim Broadway and Tommy Nix. They’d go on to play pivotal roles later on as Georgia battled back, led by special teams and defense.
Down 15-0 in the third quarter, a muffed Bill Bates fumble took on a life of its own, karoming off the hideous Astroturf at Neyland Stadium, unable to be recovered before it bounced through the end zone, giving Georgia a safety.
The Bulldogs’ first points gave them a spark, as Walker’s now-famous touchdown run with 1:03 left in the third gave Georgia a new lease on life.
“It was fumbled and rolled and rolled and we got a safety out of it, and that ignited us,” Dooley said.
The swell of momentum continued, with a Jeff Hipp fumble recovery on the next UT drive giving Georgia the ball back, a chance it used to go up 16-15 early in the fourth quarter for Walker’s second TD on what’d be the go-ahead score with 11:16 to play.
“Walker made a difference in their attack. He was outstanding,” Tennessee head coach Johnny Majors said. “It looks like Walker will be changing a few defenses as he goes along.“
Indeed.
That was plenty of time for a Tennessee offense that had scored twice in the first half to get a chance to score, and at some point, the Junkyard Dawg Defense would have to stand tall. It did, forcing a fumble by the Volunteers’ Glenn Ford at the Georgia two-yard line before a well-executed Broadway punt from the end zone kept Tennessee at bay before a gang-tackle sack in the closing seconds iced the Georgia win.
“Our linebackers Nate Taylor and Frank Ros hit Ford on the fumble late in the game,” Georgia defensive end Pat McShea said. “The ball popped out, and I just got on top of it.”
Go Dawgs!
