The 2008 Outback Bowl

Outback Bowl

The Outback Bowl is an annual New Year's Day college football bowl game played at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The event was originally called the Hall of Fame Bowl from 1986 to 1994 until being renamed in 1995 for its new title sponsor, Outback Steakhouse...

, part of the 2007-08 NCAA football bowl games season, was played on January 1, 2008 at Raymond James Stadium

Raymond James Stadium

Raymond James Stadium, also known as the "Ray Jay", is a multi-purpose football stadium located in Tampa, Florida. It is home to the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers as well as the NCAA's South Florida Bulls football team. The stadium seats 65,857 , and it is expandable to 75,000 for special events...

 in Tampa

Tampa, Florida

Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....

, Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

.

As is the case every year, the opposing teams are from the Big Ten Conference

Big Ten Conference

The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...

 (Wisconsin

Wisconsin Badgers football

The Wisconsin Badgers are a college football program that represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision and the Big Ten Conference. They play their home games at Camp Randall Stadium, the fourth-oldest stadium in college football...

) and Southeastern Conference

Southeastern Conference

The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...

 (Tennessee

Tennessee Volunteers football

The Tennessee Volunteers football team are an American college football team at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville . The NCAA Division I team is also a member of the Southeastern Conference ....

). The Volunteers were runner-ups in the SEC, having lost to LSU

LSU Tigers football

The LSU Tigers football team, also known as the Fighting Tigers or Bayou Bengals, represents Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States in NCAA Division I FBS college football. Current head coach Les Miles has led the team since 2005. Since 1999 when Nick Saban took over as...

, 21–14, in the SEC Championship Game

SEC Championship Game

The SEC Championship Game refers to the game determining the Southeastern Conference's football season champion. The championship game pits the SEC Western Division representative against the Eastern Division representative in a game held after the regular season has been completed. Thus far, nine...

 in Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...

 on December 1. The Badgers were trying for a second straight 10-win season under head coach Bret Bielema

Bret Bielema

-Personal life:Bielema announced on April 1, 2011 that he was engaged to his girlfriend, Jen. The wedding is scheduled for spring 2012.-External links:* *...

.

Tennessee won, 21–17. Wisconsin had a chance to win the game in the final minute, but Wisconsin quarterback Tyler Donovan was intercepted on a desperation pass, sealing a Volunteers win. Game MVP Erik Ainge

Erik Ainge

Erik Douglas Ainge is a retired American football quarterback formerly of the New York Jets of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Jets in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft...

 completed 25 of his 43 passes for 365 yards and two touchdowns. Wisconsin running back

Running back

A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...

 P.J. Hill

P. J. Hill, Jr.

Parrish "P. J." Hill Jr. is an American football running back for the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League. He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2009...

 ran the ball 16 times for 132 yards.

Trivia

During the first half of the Outback Bowl, the inaugural Joe Montana Award was awarded Matt Barkley

Matt Barkley

Matt Barkley is an American football quarterback and student athlete at the University of Southern California, playing for the Trojans football team. As a high school player, Barkley was named 2007 football Gatorade National Player of the Year, and then the 2007 Gatorade national male athlete of...

 of Mater Dei High School

Mater Dei High School (Santa Ana, California)

Mater Dei High School is a private, Catholic, co-educational secondary school in Santa Ana, California. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. With an enrollment of 2,100 students Mater Dei High School is one of the largest Catholic high schools in the United States...

 in Santa Ana, California

Santa Ana, California

Santa Ana is the county seat and second most populous city in Orange County, California, and with a population of 324,528 at the 2010 census, Santa Ana is the 57th-most populous city in the United States....

.

This would prove to be Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer's final bowl game with the Vols as the following season he would resign as head coach of the Vols.