Tenn. 24, Miss. St.14ATLANTA -- At least No. 1 Tennessee did its part.

Tee Martin, harassed most of the night by incessant blitzing, threw two touchdown passes 28 seconds apart in the fourth quarter and the Volunteers survived a wild Saturday, rallying to beat No. 23 Mississippi State 24-14 in the Southeastern Conference championship game.

Tennessee (12-0) assured itself of a chance to play for the national title in the Jan. 4 Fiesta Bowl with a fourth-quarter comeback worthy of a champion.

Mississippi State (8-4) went ahead 14-10 on Kevin Prentiss' 83-yard punt return with 8:43 remaining, but the Vols weren't about to suffer the same fate at Kansas State and UCLA.

Martin, who was 15-of-32 for 208 yards, directed Tennessee's struggling offense right down the field, throwing a 41-yard touchdown pass to Peerless Price with 6:15 to go. Then, after Wayne Madkin fumbled on State's next play from scrimmage, Tennessee needed only one play to score again.

Martin stood in the pocket under heavy pressure, lofting a perfect 26-yard pass to Cedrick Wilson for the clinching touchdown with 5:47 left.

View Comments

One of three undefeated teams at the top of the rankings beginning the day, Tennessee was the only one at the end. No. 2 Kansas State was upset by Texas A&M in the Big 12 championship game, losing 36-33 in double overtime, while third-ranked UCLA was stunned 49-45 by Miami.

The Vols won't know until Sunday who their opponent will be in the Fiesta Bowl. But they've accomplished the most important thing -- getting there.

Tennessee won its second straight SEC title largely because of its defense, which limited the Bulldogs to 145 yards and didn't allow their offense to score a touchdown.

But Mississippi State, a 14-point underdog, put up a tougher fight than expected.

Looking for comments?
Find comments in their new home! Click the buttons at the top or within the article to view them — or use the button below for quick access.