It snuck up on me, and it probably did you too.
Monday, Aug. 31, 2020, marked the one-year anniversary of Tennessee paying the Georgia State athletic department a cool $950,000 for its football team to make the quick trip from Atlanta to Knoxville to take an easy season-opening loss.
Er, I mean to compete and still come up short against the Vols. Um…wait, you’re telling me they still really beat Tennessee?
Shit.
But yeah, the end of August 2019 became a mini-apocalypse around here. After a 2-10 campaign in 2018, the Panthers came to Knoxville and ran all over Tennessee to hand the Vols arguably (it’s not an argument) the worst loss in school history. We were the punching bag of the college football world (again), the memes were inescapable and social media was an absolute no man’s land.
And if you attended the game as I did, it may have been the most soulless walk out of Neyland Stadium you’ve ever partaken in. The added August heat and humidity only added to the pain. Damn you, South.
So, with it already being one year since that fateful day, I took to the Twitter streets to ask the common people a simple question:
What were you doing this time one year ago post-Georgia State loss?
— Via Getty to the Hill (@TCarson__) September 1, 2020
Per usual, Vol Twitter didn’t fail.
Where Were You?
I’m not proud of this pic.twitter.com/2JDcarF2hb
— 🍊 Andy from Tennessee (@acshelton2) September 1, 2020
Getting kicked out of an Applebee’s in FL
— David Britt (@TampaVoI) September 1, 2020
— Sean (@JeetYet_) September 1, 2020
I think I was plastering the holes in my wall, but I was still plastered so not totally sure…
— Ryan Byrd (@TheRealBigByrd) September 1, 2020
Sitting in a local bar in Vegas with my brother. Bartender gave us a free pitcher of beer to ease the pain.
— Preston D Matthews (@MusicCityLawyer) September 1, 2020
I plead the fifth on the grounds that it may incriminate me.
— Lucrezia The Great (@CelinaSummers) September 1, 2020
Not proud, but I was almost all in (BYU loss I was all in) pic.twitter.com/Y1cMGKalYt
— John Acree (@j_acree33) September 1, 2020
— shannon (@shanvol) September 1, 2020
https://twitter.com/CalebSouders/status/1300889635342741510
Make your own pizza night was a disaster
— Erin Yates 🍊 (@Erin_H_Yates) September 1, 2020
With you in the studio thinking about better days and bigger plays
— malc (@_malcolmharris) September 1, 2020
Miss you, King.
literally went to bed
— dyl pickle (@dyl_52) September 1, 2020
2 pitchers deep at cool beans
— Julia Dugan (@juju_Dugan18) September 1, 2020
Was at the ER after consuming a gallon of bleach
— RockyTopRev (@PastorJustinR) September 1, 2020
https://twitter.com/bobsVOLSbunker/status/1300622589539348480
https://twitter.com/Brandiwine7777/status/1300800911393120256
Sitting at Tin Roof 2 with my favorite dumb bitch for this exchange before getting absolutely shit faced and throwing up at the Wild Beaver Saloon downtown pic.twitter.com/ZrqjDzzOok
— Wild As A Mink (@WildAsAMink98) September 1, 2020
Tweeting a lot of very uncomplimentary things about our quarterback
— David Webb (@Mr_Bandman) September 1, 2020
Talking half of my followers off the ledge https://t.co/tDcNzv1Elo
— Austin B (@Austin_Vols) September 1, 2020
Tequila. Shots.
It was not a good night. https://t.co/PQtm2bxXYN
— Jen (@SweetAsAMink) September 1, 2020
Scouting head coaches. 🤷🏻♀️ https://t.co/D2tz3JTH76
— Shawnee🎀 (@shawneescissom) September 1, 2020
I was mad, mad,.mad. Did I mention I was mad? LOL https://t.co/c6FSpS8C3A
— 2021 version Melissa (@TNMelissa) September 1, 2020
Duh. https://t.co/ig3f3Tezas pic.twitter.com/GwftqwrGYm
— Vol Trooper (@trooper_vol) September 1, 2020
My mind was wiped of all memories related to that game. https://t.co/Cxu0G78LH9
— Troy Elliott (@utracefan72) September 1, 2020
Lucky you, Troy!
Standing in my living room self loathing and txting all my buddies about how we all just witnessed the death of the Tennessee football program. https://t.co/IXm5Usy4yL
— Mark Redwine 🇺🇸🍊 (@Markredwine4) September 1, 2020
Drunk af thinking 0-12 was the most possible outcome https://t.co/GWTTugGIT3
— Cody (@TheCodyMcLemore) September 1, 2020
I blacked out at Dawg House Saloon and threw up in an Uber https://t.co/7q37UcrTRV
— Alex△⃒⃘⚯͛ (@AlexandriaaShea) September 1, 2020
Cleaning fee was worth it tbh.
Oh, I was drunk as shit stuck in the sink. https://t.co/SGspphCAvD pic.twitter.com/pEfNctKR0z
— TITAN UP DALLY (@DALLYHIGHROLLER) September 1, 2020
I am glad we all handled that loss very well, with grace and maturity. Thank God for Neyland selling beers the following week for the BYU game.
I think this has been therapeutic in a way. Certainly easier to remember and laugh when you had the second half of the season that Tennessee did, now taking the nation’s second-longest winning streak into the 2020 season.
Oh, who am I kidding, a part of me still died that day. Go Vols.
