We Will Be Talking About The 2023 Tennessee Collapse At Alabama For Decades

Everything was so great. Even after settling for a couple field goals early in the game, Tennessee was leading Alabama by two touchdowns at halftime. The Vols were decidedly the better team on the field and looked like they were going to put a definitive end to the Nick Saban dynasty.

Even Alabama fans were reminiscing on the good old days at halftime, seemingly accepting that the run was coming to an end today.

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And then the second half happened.

It didn't even look like the same two teams. Tennessee's play-calling was abysmal. The Vols' defense that looked elite in the first half was suddenly letting Alabama score any time it asked nicely. The offense that moved the ball down the field early and often didn't manage a point after halftime. It was a conflagration of epic proportions.

That second half was maybe the least fun I've ever had watching Tennessee football. I would have rather lost by 30 points than take a 20-7 lead — the 13-point halftime deficit is tied for the largest the Crimson Tide has overcome under Saban, by the way — and then experience a slow, suffocating death with each drive somehow becoming more maddening than the last. This is a loss you never forget.

Fuck.