The only thing that stopped Tennessee fans from singing “Rocky Top” as time was expiring Friday night was the need to serenade Joe Milton with something else.
Milton, who regained the starting job only after his close friend Hendon Hooker got hurt late in the year, led Tennessee to one of its finest moments in the past couple of decades. He completed 19 of 28 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns, and No. 6 Tennessee never trailed on its way to a 31-14 victory over No. 7 Clemson in the Orange Bowl.
The Volunteers, who hadn’t had an 11-win season since 2001, finished 11-2 and capped a year in which they beat Alabama, LSU and Clemson, programs that combined to win six of the seven recent College Football Playoff national titles.
Cade Klubnik, making his first start for Clemson, completed 30 of 54 passes for 320 yards with two interceptions. But Clemson (11-3) just kept coming up empty on prime scoring chances; the Tigers got into Tennessee territory on nine of their first 10 possessions and turned those trips into only two field goals. Clemson finished with 484 yards on 101 plays and still lost by 17.