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No respect? No. 1 Tennessee still playing role of underdog
Posted: Tuesday December 29, 1998 04:27 PM
SCOTTSDALE, Arizona (AP) -- Even with a perfect record and No. 1 ranking, Tennessee still hasn't received the national-championship seal of approval from the betting public. The Volunteers have gone from 3 1/2- to 5 1/2-point underdogs against No. 2 Florida State in Monday night's Fiesta Bowl, and the players are using the skepticism to motivate them even more. "We've been underdogs all year," Vols All-American linebacker Al Wilson said. "That's kind of the motto going around this team: Tennessee doesn't get the job done, they're not a good football team. It's just one more challenge for us to prove to everybody that we can be one of the elite teams in college football." There are several reasons oddsmakers are favoring the once-beaten Seminoles. First, there's coach Bobby Bowden's 14-1-1 record in Florida State's last 16 bowl games. Then there's the Seminoles' title-game atmosphere experience to go along with the team's top-ranked defense. And the Vols may have had too many close calls to earn the favorite's role, including tough wins over Syracuse, Florida and Arkansas and a tough 24-14 victory over Mississippi State in the SEC title game. "We've been underdogs in all our big games this year, so it really doesn't surprise me," wide receiver Peerless Price said. "It's just another hurdle we have to jump." The Vols were an even pick in the season-opener at Syracuse, 3-point underdogs at home against Florida and 2 1/2-point underdogs at Georgia. They beat Syracuse 34-33, the Gators 20-17 in overtime and the Bulldogs 22-3. Florida State, meanwhile, has been favored in all its games the past three years except one -- the rematch with Florida in the '97 Sugar Bowl (Florida won 52-20). "We've gotten to the point where we don't care," Bowden said. Tennessee does. "That has made us a little upset," Vols wide receiver Jeremaine Copeland said. "We're the ones undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the nation. Everybody is doubting, which has pumped us up. We have a lot to prove."
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