“To this day, I still feel badly about that one,” the legendary linebacker admitted years later.

Kiner’s wild-eyed grit contributed to UT’s 26-6-1 record over his three years, a two-time All-American (1968, 1969), two-time First-Team All-SEC (1968, 1969), SEC Sophomore of the Year (1967) and SEC Defensive Player of Year (1969), among other titles.

In 1968’s game against Ole Miss, Kiner tallied 12 tackles and two interceptions — all while playing with a broken wrist.

During his senior year, Kiner recorded 14 tackles against Alabama, with 11 solo tackles, five tackles for a loss, an interception and a forced fumble. The next week, he was named National Lineman of the Week by the Associated Press and Sports Illustrated.

“He was the best linebacker in this league since Lee Roy Jordan played for us,” lauded Alabama coach Bear Bryant said.

The Vols snagged two SEC championships during Kiner’s tenure with the team, and UT’s No. 57 earned a roster position in the Senior Bowl before entering the NFL draft.

At the time, Kiner was carrying the weight of a well-documented drug addiction he’d eventually overcome.

“I was doing acid every day, 365 days a year, or coke or mescaline, anything I could get my hands on,” he told The New York Times. “I didn't care what people thought of me — if my hair was down to my butt, if my eyes were so glazed I couldn't see two feet in front of me.”

Kiner played nine NFL seasons between the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots, Washington Redskins and Houston Oilers.

In 1994, he earned his doctorate in clinical psychology and began a mental health practice in Carrollton, Georgia.

Kiner was inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame (1998), College Football Hall of Fame (1999) and Tennessee Athletics Hall of Fame (2016) and was selected to the SEC All Legends class of 1999.

Kiner died April 24, 2025, in Palm Harbor, Fla., at 77.