It's impossible to accurately blame a loss on any one person in a football game, but Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar's mistake at the end of the first half against Alabama yesterday was about as bad as it can get.

Down 16-7, Tennessee was on the Crimson Tide's one-yard line with nine seconds left in the half and no timeouts to use, which made it a near certainty that Aguilar would be throwing the ball to avoid getting caught inbounds and running out of time. However, that would definitely have been preferable to reality.

Faking a handoff, Aguilar short-armed a throw to tight end Miles Kitselman, and it cost him. Alabama's Zabian Brown jumped the pass, intercepting it inside the one and quickly reached top speed heading the other way. Brown evaded the only Volunteer that could have stopped him at the opposite 20-yard line and cruised in to the end zone for a 99-yard pick-six to end the first half.

After the game, which Tennessee lost 37-20, head coach Josh Heupel made it clear that Aguilar was at fault for the throw, while trying not to fully blame his quarterback.

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“End of the first half, nine seconds, no timeouts, you're left with a decision: Do you want two opportunities or one? So, we got a little play action, he leaves the ball inside a little bit, and it goes back for six. Big play in the football game for sure,” Heupel said [h/t 247Sports' Ben McKee].

“Got a one-two read, and ultimately we have to be on the right side of it,” Heupel said of the play. “It's there or it's not. We have to be accurate with the ball. If not, throw it away. You got one more play. And that's not me putting it on Joey either. Ultimately, it's all of us.”

The interception turned what could have been a 16-14 game at halftime into 23-7, and despite an excellent game by running back DeSean Bishop — he had 14 carries for 123 yards and two touchdowns — the Vols fell well short of a comeback, only managing 13 points in the second half.

The loss was Tennessee's 17th to Alabama in the last 19 meetings. Additionally, UT's losing streak in Tuscaloosa reached 11 games; the last time the Vols beat ‘Bama on the road was 22 years ago as of next Saturday.