Despite a sour season, Vols plenty motivated versus Vandy

Last season, Derek Mason decried, ‘This is our state!” after his Vanderbilt Commodores upset Tennessee 45-34 in Nashville.

The Vols squandered a chance to go to the Sugar Bowl, and now a year later, they’re looking for a sweet finish to an otherwise sour season. While Saturday showdown features a pair struggling teams with dicey postseason prospects, the SEC’s Goose-Egg Bowl will still have plenty of motivation from both sides.

“There is a lot of tradition and rivalry behind this game. We played hard (last year), but things didn’t go our way,” senior tight end Ethan Wolf said.

“We let it slip out of our hands. That was a big loss that hurt us deep and has been some motivation.”

Wolf will be one of 22 seniors honored before the game Saturday, and the entire lot is looking to finish their career out on a high note. Tennessee fell to No. 20 LSU 30-10 last Saturday, moving to 4-7 on the season. With their bowl hopes effectively out the window, the Vols are playing to avoid infamy. A loss Saturday would move Tennessee to 4-8 on the season and 0-8 in SEC play — two feats that have never happened in school history.

Tennessee is a 1-point favorite against Vandy this weekend (4 p.m., SEC Network), as the Commodores have had a brutal SEC season, too. They were manhandled 59-0 by Alabama, kickstarting a five-game losing streak. They knocked off Western Kentucky to end their slide, but have been blown out by Kentucky and Mizzou at home in consecutive weeks.

Although quarterback Kyle is averaging 329 yards in his last three SEC games, the junior has tossed seven picks during the team’s two-game losing streak.

“Vanderbilt started off well. They have had some hiccups similar to what we have had,” UT interim coach Brady Hoke said. “I think we have our work cut out for us, but it will be fun.”

The Vols have dropped three of five in the series and have only lost consecutive games to the rivalry once (2012, 2013) in the last 90 years. While they remain battered and bruised from a long season and aren't even sure how many healthy offensive linemen will dress, Wolf insists Tennessee will be ready to go this weekend.

“It’s easy to get motivated for this game,” Wolf said.

“It’s the nature of the game, the tradition behind it with it being a rivalry game and it being mine and a lot of guys last go around here in Neyland.

"There is definitely going to be some fire. We are all competitors. We don’t want to lose, no matter who we are playing. We are going to come out and play as hard as we possibly can and try and end this season with a victory.”