COLUMBUS, Ohio (WATE) — “Frankly that ’95 team was probably the most talented team I ever played with,” said Jeff Hall.
The 1995 University of Tennessee team managed to win the one and only meetup between the Vols and the Ohio State University Buckeyes on Jan. 1, 1996. That matchup was a star-studded event.
“What I remember about the Ohio State game is there was a lot of talent. I think if you look back on that field for that game, playing 50 games at the University of Tennessee, that game really sticks out because of the talent that was on both side lines,” said Hall. “I don’t know what the numbers are, but I bet nine or 10 guys that were at the game on one of the sidelines probably played in the NFL; talent was stacked, we were the underdog, so it was a big game for us.”
In the midst of a downpour, Eddie George ran in a touchdown towards the end of the first quarter to put the Buckeyes on the board.
By the skin of their teeth, Tennessee managed a Jay Graham 69-yard score to tie it before the half.
A Peyton Manning to Joey Kent connection put the Vols up early in the third, but the Buckeyes would tie it up at 14 to kick off the fourth.
Cue one of the Vols’ best kickers in history, Hall, whose head coach wasn’t too happy with him at the moment.
“Coach Fulmer had got on me one time because I had really duffed a kickoff and I slipped, I got under the ball and it went over to the left and Coach Fulmer was not happy about it and I was trying to explain it to them,” said Hall.
However, Hall more than made up for it.
“I just remember being out there, it’s a tie game, I think the first field goal was probably seven minutes into the fourth quarter and the second maybe with two minutes remaining, so they weren’t last second field goals, but in a close game like that with all the talent on the field, every point matters, so I knew how important they were,” said Hall.
The 1995 team had the talent, and they won the Citrus Bowl 20-14 over Ohio State as the underdog.
Though it wasn’t quite their time to win it all, it did lay the foundation for the years to come, and eventually to capture the 1998 National Championship.
Nearly 19 years later, the Vols and the Buckeyes will face off again in a first-round game of the College Football Playoff, which will be broadcast on News 2 at 7 p.m. CT on Saturday, Dec. 21. The winner will advance to take on No. 1 University of Oregon in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day.
