Maybe the Vols shouldn’t play in Columbia anymore.

It isn’t that they always lose at South Carolina. But when they do, the consequences are truly devastating.

The 1992 and 2016 losses kept Tennessee out of the SEC title game, with the ’92 loss leading to the firing of Johnny Majors. The 2008 loss was almost immediately followed by the firing of Phillip Fulmer. And Saturday night’s 63-38 loss ended the Vols’ dreams of earning a spot in the College Football Playoff.

The Vols picked the worst possible time to play their worst game of the Josh Heupel era. The Georgia loss 2 weeks earlier paled in comparison, in large part because the Bulldogs are the best team in the nation. There’s no shame in losing to the defending national champions in their building.

On the other hand, South Carolina came into this game with a 6-4 record, and it was only 7 days removed from being unable to score an offensive touchdown at Florida.

But Tennessee couldn’t stop the Gamecocks all night. South Carolina QB Spencer Rattler looked like the star he was supposed to be at Oklahoma with 438 yards passing and 6 TDs. The Gamecocks, a team that came into this game 9th in scoring and 11th in total offense in the SEC, scored 63 points and racked up 606 yards.

This was no fluke. It was a tail-kicking of the highest order.

Tennessee’s players lost their cool, jawing with their opponents throughout the game. Much worse than that, the Vols lost their QB, Hendon Hooker, to a non-contact ACL injury. He’ll miss the rest of the season.

Considering the stakes, this had to be Tennessee’s worst defeat since the 2001 SEC title game, when a 31-20 loss to LSU kept the Vols out of the BCS title game at the Rose Bowl.

But other than that Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?

I know that Tennessee fans are depressed. The Vols have been mediocre for the better part of the past 15 years. When your team gets this close to the Playoff, you want to cash in, because you never know if or when this opportunity will come around again.

I’m going to try to put this loss — as bad as it was — into perspective. And I know Vols fans probably aren’t going to want to read this today after watching their defense get absolutely torched, their quarterback exit and their New Year’s Eve plans dashed.

But the 2022 season has marked the return of Tennessee football to the national landscape.

South Carolina fans rushed the field after beating the Vols. That doesn’t happen when you beat an average team. I remember that back in 2000, the Vols had both LSU and Georgia fans storm the field after beating them. Tennessee was a college football power back then, and it is trending in that direction again.

This season, the Vols beat Florida for only the 2nd time since 2004. This season, the Vols won at LSU, snapping a 5-game losing streak to a Tigers team that has gone on to win the Western Division. This season, the Vols snapped a 15-year losing streak to Alabama, their most bitter rival, in what was one of the greatest games in the history of college football.

This season, the Vols beat up Kentucky. Well, that happens almost every year. Never mind.

This season, Hooker turned into a Heisman Trophy contender, Jalin Hyatt proved himself to be one of the best receivers in the nation and Heupel proved yet again that his offensive system is going to work in the SEC.

And yes, I know that none of those things will put Humpty Dumpty back together again. But had I told you in August that Tennessee would be 9-2 heading into the final game of the regular season, with wins over 2 of its 3 biggest rivals, you’d be pretty excited as a Vols fan, yes?

Tennessee was able to mask its defensive deficiencies, especially in the secondary, for most of the season. The Vols entered the South Carolina game ranked 85th in the nation in total defense. It’s obvious that something will have to change on that side of the football if the Vols are to take that next step.

Yes, UT needs better players on defense. It also needs better coaching on defense. Heupel will have some serious decisions to make this offseason about his staff to ensure this never happens again.

OK. You can go back to breaking dishes or yelling at someone on Twitter now if you like. Missing out on what might have been a national semifinal game against Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl is a real bummer.

But isn’t it better to be sad about what might have been than to never even be in the conversation?