Tennessee joins 4 SEC national championship teams with the latest achievement

Tennessee’s offense has been up and down all season, but the defense has gained more than its fair share of traction.

The Volunteers have held their first eight opponents under 20 points in every game, with Kentucky’s 18 points being the most they have allowed so far this season.

Josh Heupel’s defense is the only unit in the FBS to accomplish this feat, but it also joins a fairly exclusive club when it comes to recent SEC squads that have achieved this goal.

Tennessee has held its first eight opponents to under 20 points – the only FBS defense in 2024 to do so

The other four SEC defenses (since 2000) to achieve that all won national titles

2003 LSU
2011Alabama
2012Alabama
2021 Georgia

— Pick six samples (@PickSixPreviews) November 3, 2024

The 2003 LSU squad actually only allowed one team (Arkansas) to surpass the 20-point mark all season before beating Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl.

In 2011, Alabama similarly allowed only one team (ironically, Georgia Southern) to score more than 20 points en route to beating LSU for the national title.

The 2012 Crimson Tide team gave up more than 20 points to Johnny Manziel’s Texas A&M team and Georgia in the SEC title game before handily defeating Notre Dame in the BCS National Championship.

And finally, in 2021, Georgia’s historic unit only allowed Alabama to score more than 20 points in the SEC title game, and the Bulldogs got revenge when they limited the Tide to just 18 points in the national championship game.

All four of these teams won titles every season, and the Vols would like nothing more than to continue that trend.