Tennessee's defense had one more stop left in it, afterall.

After keeping the No. 8 Vols in the game against Florida late Saturday and then holding the Gators off after claiming their first lead in the fourth quarter, the group came up again in overtime, sending the Gators backwards on their lone possession.

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A drive that started at the 25-yard line ended in a missed field goal from 47 yards, giving Tennessee's offense the ball and the eventual touchdown run from Dylan Sampson to win, 23-17 at Neyland Stadium.

Sampson finished with 112 yards on 27 carries and scored all of Tennessee's three touchdowns. It ultimately overshadowed another stagnant offensive performance from the Vols (5-1, 2-1 SEC), who were shutout for the second-straight game.

Similar to Tennessee's loss at Arkansas a week ago, the passing game struggled to materialize in the first two quarters, in part because of reoccurring issues on the offensive line, which allowed quarterback Nico Iamaleava to be sacked three times.

Iamaleava accounted for 169 yards on 16-of-26 passing with an interception--his sixth turnover in six games this season. But the Vols' defense continued to give the offense a chance and they ultimately paid it off on their game-winning drive in overtime.

Tennessee forced two turnovers, both in critical moments. James Pearce Jr. stripped the ball away from Florida quarterback Graham Mertz at the goal line to end a potential Florida (3-3, 1-2) scoring drive in the first half.

Arion Carter intercepted a DJ Lagway pass in the third quarter that set up Max Gilbert's game-tying field goal. The Vols totaled three sacks and 12 tackles for loss.

FIRST QUARTER

10 pays, 27 yards, 4:51 (time of possession)

Tennessee's second drive started at its own 10-yard line and a holding call backed it up to the end zone and eventually ended in a punt that gave Florida good field position around midfield. The Gators covered 27 yards, but the Vols' defense stuffed the run on third-and-1 and Florida settled for a 42-yard field goal from Trey Smack to take the lead with 3:15 left in the quarter.

Florida 3, Tennessee 0

THIRD QUARTER

9 plays, 92 yards, 4:14

The Tennessee defense made another stand to open the third quarter and pinned Florida back, but the Vols' were again unable to take advantage of good field position. After a three-and-out gave the ball back to the Gators, a four-plus minute drive was capped with a Graham Mertz 13-yard touchdown pass to Arlis Boardingham to extend Florida's lead with 7:18 to go in the third.

Florida 10, Tennessee 0

11 plays, 75 yards, 4:21

Tennessee, down two scores, showed signs of life on offense and used a heavy dose of Dylan Sampson on its second drive of the third, driving inside the Florida 5 before facing fourth-and-1. The Vols converted another critical fourth down and Sampson turned it into more with a 6-yard touchdown--Tennessee's first of the game to get on the board.

Florida 10, Tennessee 7

4 plays, 3 yards, 1:10

Florida sent freshman quarterback DJ Lagway out onto the field for injured starter Mertz and he immediately made a mistake, throwing a ball that was intercepted by Tennessee linebacker Arion Carter to set the offense up at the Gators' 20 after a 15 yard return. The Vols were unable to take the lead, but Max Gilbert's 35-yard field goal kick evened the score late in the third.

Tennessee 10, Florida 10

FOURTH QUARTER

2 plays, 29 yards, 0:29

Tennessee's defense again. The Vols, assisted by a punt from Jackson Ross that put Florida at its own 6, forced a three-and-out and Gators punt from the back of their end zone. Jermod McCoy returned the punt 17 yards to the 29 and then two plays Sampson burst into the secondary for a 23-yard touchdown to give Tennessee its first lead with 9:42 remaining.

Tennessee 17, Florida 10

4 plays, 31 yards, 2:02

Chimere Dike gave Florida a chance late with a 27-yard punt return to the Tennessee 31. It looked like the Vols were going to again force the Gators into a do-or-die fourth down attempt, but Lagway instead hit Dike for a 27-yard touchdown on third-and-19. Smack's extra point evened the score and all but ensured overtime with 29 seconds left in regulation.

Tennessee 17, Florida 17

OVERTIME

5 plays, 25 yards, 0:00

Florida went on offense first but moved backwards. A false start penalty on the second play of the drive was followed by a Bryson Eason tackle for loss. The Gators were forced to kick a 47-yard field goal, but Smack's kick missed wide. All Tennessee needed was a field goal to win, but Sampson scored the game-winning touchdown on a 1-yard run.

Tennessee 23, Florida 17

Florida was on the doorstep of extending its lead just before halftime.

On second-and-goal, Graham Mertz rank a quarterback sneak and James Pearce Jr. ripped the ball out. He recovered his own forced fumble and the Vols managed to keep the Gators out of the end zone.

Tennessee will play Alabama next Saturday, seeking its second win over the Crimson Tide in three years.

The Vols memorably ended a 15-year losing streak to Alabama in the last meeting between the two teams in Knoxville, winning on a Chase McGrath field goal as time expired, 52-49.

The Crimson Tide (5-1) outlasted South Carolina, 27-25 in their last outing on Saturday.

Kickoff between Tennessee and Alabama is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC at Neyland Stadium.

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