Tennessee Overwhelms Florida In Second Half

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Dale Carter's 91-yard return of the second-half kickoff ignited a 28-point third quarter - which included a rare touchdown pass by the tight end - and No. 5 Tennessee beat No. 9 Florida 45-3 in a Southeastern Conference showdown last night.

Carter's return gave Tennessee a 14-3 lead and signalled an abrupt end to what had been a fierce defensive struggle between the Volunteers (4-0-2 overall, 2-0-1 SEC) and Gators (5-1, 3-1).

Florida fumbled on the ensuing possession and the Volunteer offensive avalanche gathered momentum. Tennessee drove 68 yards in 10 plays, taking a 21-3 lead on Tony Thompson's 13-yard run.

The offensive outburst reached its pinnacle when tight end Von Reeves took a handoff from Andy Kelly, faded back and threw a perfect 47-yard touchdown strike to Carl Pickens to make it 28-3 with 4:40 still left in the third period.

Florida tried to rally behind reserve quarterback Brian Fox, but he was intercepted on three consecutive possessions. Tennessee's Reggie Ingram returned one 42 yards for a touchdown to give the Vols a 35-3 lead and cap the four-touchdown quarter.

The Vols added their final points on 38-yard field goal by Greg Burke and a short touchdown run by reserve quarterback Sterling Henton.

The homecoming game drew the second-largest crowd in school history, 96,874, and ended Florida's four-game winning streak in the series.

It was Florida's first loss under new coach Steve Spurrier and represented the largest margin of defeat in a 20-game series between the teams since 1916. The previous biggest margin was Tennessee's 40-0 victory in 1944.

Carter picked up the second-half kickoff on the first bounce at his own 9, just inside the right boundary. He popped out of a pack of players at the 20, shook off a tackle at midfield, picked up an escort and outran everybody into the end zone.

In seven seconds, the Vols had equaled their offensive output of the first half.

Florida's Monty Duncan nearly returned the favor on the ensuing kickoff, which he returned 53 yards before being knocked down by Joey Chapman, Tennessee's kicker and last hope, at the Vols' 45.

Errict Rhett fumbled two plays later and Jeremy Lincoln recovered for the Vols.

Tennessee then put together the 68-yard drive capped by Thompson's burst up the middle on a draw play.

The third-quarter explosion by Tennessee was stunning. Florida's defense entered the game ranked first in the SEC, and played up to expectations through the opening half.

Tennessee scored first on an 17-play, 79-yard drive capped by Greg Amsler's 1-yard plunge early in the second quarter. It was the first rushing touchdown yielded by the Florida defense this season, and it was given grudgingly.

The Vols twice had to convert on fourth down to keep the drive going. Kelly sneaked for a yard to get one first down and Thompson dived four yards for the other.

All told, Tennessee picked off five Florida passes.

-- MISSISSIPPI 28, AT GEORGIA 12 - Randy Baldwin scored two touchdowns as No. 24 Mississippi won its fourth game in a row. Baldwin rushed for 106 yards and scored on runs of three and 13 yards as the Rebels won in Athens for the first time in 20 years, snapping a nine-game losing streak on Georgia's home field.

-- AT AUBURN 56, VANDERBILT 6 - Stan White threw two touchdown passes to Greg Taylor and Auburn's special teams scored twice in the Tigers' big victory. Auburn (2-0-1, 4-0-1) built a 42-6 halftime lead and finished with 518 yards, including 301 in the first half.

-- AT KENTUCKY 17, MISSISSIPPI STATE 15 - Nose guard Joey Couch deflected a field-goal attempt with 3:26 left in the game, and Kentucky's defenders blocked two other tries in leading the Wildcats to a victory.