Thank Kramer for UT bowl

Tennessee can thank retired SEC commissioner Roy Kramer for being in the 2002 bowl picture. It was Kramer who negotiated the contracts with seven bowls, guaranteeing mediocre SEC teams a bowl berth. Tennessee will finish the regular season 7-5 or 8-4, depending on Kentucky's mood this Saturday.

In earlier times, when there weren't so many bowls and going to a bowl was a real honor, Tennessee often stayed home despite winning 7-9 games a season. The same was true of other football powers.

Bob Neyland's Tennessee teams were undefeated three straight years (1927-29) and lost only one game in six years (1927-32) but didn't get invited to a bowl because there was only one bowl, the Rose, until 1935.

John Barnhill's 1941 and 1945 Tennessee teams won eight games each but weren't in a bowl game. But you can bet your bippy that Tennessee will be in a bowl this season, even if the Vols lose to Kentucky.

These days, with 28 bowls, it's a total disgrace if you have the prerequisite six victories and don't go bowling. With the NCAA proliferation of bowls in the 1980s and 90s, Kramer not only created the Bowl Championship Series, he made it possible for 56 teams, including seven from the SEC, to play postseason games. Even if there aren't seven bowl-worthy SEC teams.

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Kentucky coach Guy Morriss expects his Wildcats to play their best game of the year Saturday against Tennessee. But he's cautioned his