Tennessee and Notre Dame's Fateful Clash | The Miracle at South Bend

[@KornPop96]

I watched this game live as a kid with my grandfather. One of my favorite childhood memories. RIP Pop 🙏

[@brandonutterback3789]

Same!

[@ThomasOConnor-wv5jt]

I was 6! My pawpaw(mom's dad) was a HUGE Norte Dame fan, my dad bleeds orange!! I can still remember the end perfectly, I had never seen my Dad so happy or my Pawpaw so mad😂😂😂 Seeing my Pawpaw throw his hat at Dad and yell shut the hell up!!😂😂😂 Miss the hell outta him❤❤ GBO🍊🍊

[@WillYork-dl5zq]

I remember having this game on VHS! It was called “Miracle at South Bend”

[@SamuraiCop]

Me too. We watched it on “antenna” after the cable went out. I remember my little brother had a retainer/headgear at the time and we made him hold his head a certain way so we could all watch the game through his impromptu antenna 😂 RIP to our grandpas. Go Vols.

[@joshuagann8026]

Same

[@tennesseeridgerunner5992]

Watched this game and was jumping up and down as much as I did for the "22 TN/ALA game. Great memory and legendary Volunteer win. So good to hear John Ward's voice again.

[@themontgomeryc]

Dude this is awesome, seriously thank you for this. Ive been searching for a cfb channel with this type of format for so long. And like my previous comment, the footage is absolutely incredible. Top notch. This is what makes youtube great. I know this took alot of work, keep it up. You deserve a million subs

[@KornPop96]

Me too. As a lifelong Vols fan I've been waiting for a video like this of this long forgotten game. It was such a big deal for us Tennessee fans.

[@gridironlore33-18]

I appreciate the love man. Plenty more to come!

[@ds2271]

I remember this game well. Couldn’t believe Tennessee came back to win. As a Tennessee fan this game and the 86 sugar bowl along with the 2022 Alabama game are the greatest Tennessee wins I think I’ve watched on tv In my lifetime.

[@anythingthoughanythingthou2453]

Refs won that Bama game, I’ll say that till the day I die

[@kne2323]

Don’t forget the ‘98 game against Arkansas….

[@ds2271]

@@kne2323 oh yeah I was at that game. Rained the whole game.

[@chiefslinginbeef3641]

​@@anythingthoughanythingthou2453 lol

[@fredstriker2042]

Watched this game with my best friends (we still watch a game or two together annually).. I don't think i've ever been more excited in a UT game...

[@davidwoody5228]

I was there in South Bend. At the end of the first half I thought it was over. Then to see the blocked kick at the end was electrifying. The Notre Dame faithful around me had been nice all day long as my Vols took a beating and they sat in quiet expectation of another ND victory. They were as stunned as I was elated. Things like that don’t happen in South Bend, under the watchful eyes of “touchdown Jesus.” But it did, and on Senior Day too. Lou Holtz later said it was the most bitter defeat he ever suffered

[@toddwinegar7365]

I from east TN an hour away from Knoxville I was 12 when this game happened. Football was my first love, played 15 years of ball. Just 2 years prior to this I was a big Notre Dame/Rocket Ismael fan. But by the time this game was played my blood was already running 🍊, just like today. Anyways that day I watched that game until they went up 34-7 i think it was almost half time? Gave up the TV to my younger brothers and sisters who wanted to watch something else and went outside and mowed the yard, mad as heck the whole time. Came back in just in time to see that TN won. Didnt get to see the mussed FG or anything 😕. So thanks for posting, all these years later and I had never seen the rest of that game! Really thanks and GBO 2024!

[@spankyJ9824]

I watched this game outside of my brothers youth league game on a 13 inch black-and-white television that was plugged into my mother‘s Cadillac cigarette lighter. I will never forget that day.

[@gridironlore33-18]

That’s awesome. I love hearing personal accounts like this

[@fatmanoutdoors]

That last quote. "Two great teams that could beat anyone, but when the lights shined the brightest, the only team they could beat was themselves." - Man that really sums up those last few Majors led UT teams.

[@MTGrad1]

I’ve got great memories of this game…30 years apart. I taught two of Rob Leonard’s kids without knowing who their dad is. His son was hilarious in how he let me know. I’ve had conversations with Rob at Boy Scout meetings (our sons were classmates) and didn’t know that was him.

[@davidwoody5228]

Great video dude. Thanks for the memories. GBO!!

[@gridironlore33-18]

I appreciate the love man!

[@BillVol]

Was there!

[@gridironlore33-18]

That’s sweet. I’ve read that some Tennessee fans thought the kick at the end was good. What was it like from your perspective?

[@TheUt22gg]

I was too. I made the Miracle at South Bend tape Tennessee produced. We all went on the field afterwards and took home a piece of the end zone turf so I could plant in the yard and piss on ND whenever I felt like.

[@chiefslinginbeef3641]

Great video bud im sharing it with other gbo family

[@gridironlore33-18]

That’s awesome man I appreciate the love

[@JP93002]

Tennessee will probably be the last SEC team to make a late season trip to South Bend (2005) Huge respect to them

[@guillermobarrio55]

A Miami fan here. That 1990 ND-Tennessee game has been perhaps the best one I have ever watched, despite its frustrating ending. The 91 game was fun, but... not as good.

[@topmech71]

They were two classic games no doubt...

[@davidyates9366]

Andy Kelly a Rhea County boy!

[@alexfoster71]

Rhea County has played my Powell Panthers several times over the years, especially in the playoffs.

[@joshuagann8026]

Yessir. I'm from Jefferson County, do you remember how big a rivalry we had back in the 80s early 90s. In 86 it POURED down the entire 4 quarters, Rhea 7 Jeff 6 , our nose guard gave me that game ball i was 8. The next year or so we broke either Andy or his little brothers ( can't remember which) jaw..... I do remember they finished the game 22-19 Jeff. Several GREAT games between those 2

[@haroldfarquad6886]

One of the best games in history. My favorite team ruining the season of the most detestable program in the sport. Notre Dame losing is good for everyone:)

[@jamesconner3437]

I'm a Vol fan. But I'm wondering was there any one special thing which caused you to get so opposed to ND. ?

[@haroldfarquad6886]

@@jamesconner3437 Yes. Decades of refusal to join a conference, thereby risking one less game against a top level competitor, while still expecting and receiving special treatment from AP and BCS voters for their record at the end of the season. For years, they crafted their own schedule, often full of powder puffs and mid-tier teams from mid-tier conferences, and if they managed to go 11-1, they fully expected to be in national title contention, despite a pathetically weak schedule compared to some 12-1 teams, or even 10-2 teams with obviously better teams. Time and time again, I have seen ND treated as the favorite child of the sports media off the accomplishments their program made a full two to five generations ago. The most egregious example of this was the 2012 season. They went undefeated through a sorry schedule, narrowly escaping games against vastly inferior Pittsburg and BYU, waltzed into the BCS because "who could keep precious undefeated ND out of the game?!" Well... anyone with a brain knew that ND team didn't belong on the same field as Bama and would get slaughtered... and they did. The media finally gave them the chance they believed they always deserved, and they got humiliated. Therefore, I think they should be barred from the postseason forever until they join a conference. They're a blight on the sport, and its their unwavering arrogance that pisses me off so much.

[@provost5752]

I enjoyed watching Northern Illinois beat Notre Dame last week.

[@topmech71]

After the turnover Rahgeeb Rocket got loose...they had contained him pretty well the whole game until then. They had a chance to win that game in '90 at the end but Kelly throws an INT in the endzone. Still like the way the guy played though with a lot of guts and courage.

[@alexfoster71]

This was Coach Majors last signature win at UT. I appreciate all that he did, both as a player and coach, but it was time for him to go. Coach Fulmer and others did him dirty, but that’s a sing for another time. I grew up near Knoxville and was seven years old when I first started following the Vols in the 1989. Never forget the disappointment after the loss to Notre Dame at Neyland Stadium in 1990 and the happiness after beating those guys in South Bend the following season.

[@gridironlore33-18]

Majors was one heck of a coach. It’s amazing to me that he won a national title with Pittsburgh but never managed to do so with Tennessee. I take it you were on Majors’ side during the coaching controversy in 1992?

[@alexfoster71]

@@gridironlore33-18 Coach Majors did many good things, although recruiting was much different when he was brand new at Pitt than it was when he was at Tennessee as far as number of scholarship players that a team could sign and such. I’m thankful that Coach Majors came back to Knoxville. The Majors/Fulmer fallout in 1992 was a tough time for Tennessee football. I honestly don’t think that UT would’ve gotten past Spurrier, Stallings and other competition to get the National Championship like Fulmer did. I’m thankful for both of them, but it’s really lousy how Fulmer went behind Johnny’s back in dealings with the AD (Doug Dickey, who Fulmer played for) And university President to get the job. Admittedly, most of this is from reading online, as I was only 10 years old when this went down. I actually saw Coach Majors at a UT Men’s basketball game in the concourse at Thompson Boling Arena in 2019. It was against Arkansas and I told him and the aides with him that one of the first games I remembered watching was the Cotton Bowl vs Arkansas. Big win to finish the 1989 season

[@eveason91]

Please make a video about the Tennessee / Florida rivalry. One of the best in College Football. GBO 🍊

[@WillMuny]

You are kidding right? Its not even a rivalry. From 1956-1989 they played 7 times.

[@eveason91]

@@WillMuny you gotta be joking. In the 90s & early 2000s whenever Tennessee & Florida played it basically decided who would go on to compete for an SEC / National title. Those games were massive. Read up about it and educate yourself if you want. It most definitely is a rivalry bud. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida-Tennessee_football_rivalry

[@WillMuny]

@@eveason91 12 years is not a rivalry. From 1922 when Florida joined what is now the SEC till 1989 they played 17 times. That is NOT a rivalry. Sure they were good in the 90s, but that is it. Rivals play each other every year. Florida and Tennessee have not played a meaningful game outside 1990-2001.

[@eveason91]

@@WillMuny we play Florida every single year… A lot of things go into making a rivalry. Not just time, which seems to be the only metric you are going by. I guarantee you that most people will disagree with your take on this. The Florida and Tennessee game was the one college football pundits talked about all off-season, because it was usually the game that determined your SEC champion. From 1990 to 2001, Florida and Tennessee combined to play in the SEC Championship Game ten times with both teams combining for two national titles in that span. It was this early season match up that not only determined the SEC East champion, but the conference champion. Both teams had NFL level talent ALL over the field. Steve Spurrier constantly trash talked Tennessee, with famous lines like “you can’t spell citrus bowl without UT”. Not to mention “Faxgate” - Jack Sells, a former Tennessee assistant who was fired in 1991 for what Tennessee said was NCAA recruiting violations, was caught faxing part of Tennessee's playbook to then-Florida defensive coordinator Ron Zook the week of the game. Sells and Zook were friends from when Zook coached at Tennessee in the 1980s. The gators wound up winning that game 35-18 All of this history is still relevant to Tennessee / Florida fans, and I promise you they consider each other rivals. Sure, after probably 2004, the rivalry lost some of its competitive luster because Tennessee slid off into the dark ages (which we have now hopefully finally pulled out of) and Florida went on a dominant run with Urban Meyer. But there has always been an air of voodoo about this game that is honestly difficult to explain to someone. All the brutal 4th quarter last second losses to Florida are still very fresh in the minds of Tennessee fans and they are definitely one of the games we have circled on the calendar every single year no matter what. It is a rivalry.

[@WillMuny]

@@eveason91 Every game is not a rivalry. True Rivalries stand the test of time, Florida and Tennessee have not played one meaningful game outside ONE decade. It seems the only metric you use is 30 years ago they were once really good at the same time. Also, and this is very ironic, this game was made by Expansion, this game will also END because of Expansion. 2025 is more than likely the last time Tennessee and Florida play each other every year. Tennessee wont be able to play Alabama, Kentucky, Vanderbilt AND Florida, Georgia every year. So Florida and Georgia will be the ones to be dropped because they are not true rivalries. And that is if they have 3 locked in games, if it falls to 2 then even more chance Florida and Tennessee rarely play each other. Tennessee and Florida were division foes who were really good for about 12 years, but not a real rivalry. Alabama-Tennessee now THAT is a real rivalry. Georgia-Florida now THAT is a real rivalry. One thing I will say, in this day of Corporate Football, Tradition is dying a quick death and tradition is what makes Rivalries, so who knows what happens in the future. Maybe TV Ratings and Corporate Payouts will decide what the new rivalries are. One last comparison. Army-Navy is a true rivalry, and while Air Force is also their rivals it cannot compare to Army-Navy. I would put Tennessee-Florida in the same category as Air Force-Army. Bottom of 2nd tier at best.

[@Vol2169]

In 1990 Colorado split the National Championship, they didn't win it out right.

[@gridironlore33-18]

Yep Colorado finished 1st in the AP Poll while Georgia Tech finished 1st in the Coaches Poll

[@WillMuny]

A travesty. Georgia Tech had no business winning a share. Just like BYU in 1984. By far the 2 worst teams to ever "win" a National Title in football.

[@plyingspace5025]

14:30 task failed successfully

[@Michael_Chandler_Keaton]

GBO!!

[@robd2721]

I wonder just how lousy the sight line was for the Tennessee announcer? It was like he wished the kick was actually good, he was so excited! But it missed by a mile!

[@markcollins9723]

Even as a Vol, I always feel bad for that young kicker. There's so much focus on the starter being hurt, he's so young (12 -13 years old, I think), so much pressure, etc. The kick was at least a little blocked. Blame the entire rest of the kicking team for not blocking better. Did the regular, veteran, savvy kicker make the field goal at the end of the first half? No, the same kicking team let that one get blocked, too.

[@1stofer]

12 or 13 you think ? Huh? This is college football, not middle school.

[@alexfoster71]

Kicker was probably closer to 20 years old, give or take a year.

[@NathanTrail-d7b]

I hate notre dame go vols🍊🍊🍊🍊🍊🍊💍💍💍💍💍

[@justincooper7323]

John Ward was such a terrible announcer

[@chucktilley7155]

Well Majors was scared of Alabama

[@redevil7081]

Majors wasn’t afraid of Bama. He just knew Bear had good teams, Major’s started playing not to lose. I cried halfway home on a three hour ride after he let Bama beat us 9-6…I had company. GBO!

[@chucktilley7155]

I remember that game i was there RTR

[@redevil7081]

@@chucktilley7155Went to Bear’s last game in the ‘82 Liberty Bowl against Illinois. I grew up in NW TN, was back home for Christmas, a younger brother who lived near Jackson had tickets. GBO!

[@redevil7081]

Granny Holtz still hates UT…of course he moved around a lot, left every program he went to with NCAA violations and penalties. He would climb into Jed’s truck and move to his next victim. John Majors had taken the VOLs about as high as his capabilities; he couldn’t keep staff, and players were getting tired of three yards and a cloud of dust. At the same time he was pushing to be the highest paid SEC coach, was very vocal with it in the wrong places…some of the major alumni were tired of his ranting and negativity to the school, his alma mater. Fulmer stepped in. I agree this is one of the greatest UT victories. GBO!

[@gridironlore33-18]

Interesting to hear both sides of the discussion when it comes to Coach Majors. Always on the cusp of a national title but could never get over the hump, especially when it came to playing Alabama. He seems like somewhat of a Mark Richt character to me; bringing Tennessee back to national prominence, but necessary to move on from if you want to win the big one.

[@joshuagann8026]

You from Halls? Jeff county here.