Tennessee's seniors will run through the 'T' for the last time Saturday.

They will hear cheering in Neyland Stadium for the last time as they make solo runs through the "T." Rocky Top will ring in their ears. Emotions will be stirred.

They wanted to go out with an SEC Championship, maybe a trip to the Rose Bowl. Now, they're looking for a win over Vanderbilt, a win over Kentucky, and a trip to the Independence Bowl or the Music City Bowl.

Not exactly what they had in mind when the 2005 season began.

"I've put in three other seasons here," senior guard Cody Douglas said. "Obviously, this one kind of went in an opposite direction, but when you look at your last home game you kind of have to take your whole career into account, and all the good times that you've had here along with the bad, try to make the most out of it and not go out losing your last home game."

UT's 22-game winning streak against Vanderbilt is the second-longest active winning streak by a team over a major opponent in Division I-A among teams that play every season. Only Notre Dame's 41 straight victories over Navy is a more one-sided rivalry.

A loss to Vanderbilt would not only end one streak, it would end the Vols' streak of 16 consecutive bowl trips.

Senior linebacker Jason Mitchell says the losing has been more difficult than playing with a bad knee most of the season.

"I've been more frustrated with the record more than anything," Mitchell said. "The knee is something that happens in football. But I wish we could have reached our goal and gotten me a ring, but since I didn't I'm more frustrated by that."

Junior guard Rob Smith, who was redshirted in 2003, came in with this year's senior class.

"(The Vanderbilt game) is huge because that's all my friends," Smith said. "That's all the '02 class. That's all my class. That's all the people I came in with, that's all the people I've been here forever with for four years, working hard with and all that. It's pretty big."

Mitchell will have surgery on his knee Monday and will miss the regular-season finale against Kentucky. He played with a bad knee with his sights set on the Vanderbilt game.

"At times I catch myself getting all emotional about the situation because I made sure I was able to push myself far enough to be able to play in this game," he said.