Tennessee junior running back Arian Foster has been waiting a year for his shot at redemption in the Outback Bowl, but he's not alone.

It was Foster's fumble in the fourth quarter that was the pivotal play in the team's disappointing 20-10 loss to Penn State in the 2007 Outback Bowl.

The game was tied 10-10 when Volunteers quarterback Erik Ainge hit tight end Chris Brown for a 53-yard pass play to the Nittany Lions' 14-yard line.

But linebacker Dan Connor's tackle forced Foster to fumble, and Tony Davis returned it 88 yards for the decisive touchdown with 10 minutes, 1 second remaining.

It was the fifth loss in Tennessee's last seven bowl games and a play that motivated Foster throughout the offseason.

"Arian's just had a fantastic career here at Tennessee," Volunteers coach Phillip Fulmer said. "Sometimes, possibly, even under appreciated (by) some. I do think that fumble really hurt him, basically going in to win the football game and all of a sudden we've got a 14-point swing.

"He, I think, reached a maturity level after that, that he had not previously gotten to, as far as his consistency and his preparations. Part of it is just a normal process he's gone through as he's matured as a running back. He's a very, very fine football player."

Heading into this year's Outback Bowl game against the University of Wisconsin, Foster has rushed for 1,162 yards, with an average of 5.1 yards per carry.

Somewhat quietly, he ranks eighth on the school's career rushing list with 2,363 yards.

Tennessee has a long history of outstanding running backs, like Travis Henry, James Stewart, Johnnie Jones and Jamal Lewis, to name a few. Foster needs 716 yards to top them all.

"Which is quite a statement, when you consider all the great backs that have been through here," Fulmer said.

Foster does not have blazing speed. He was caught from behind on a 47-yard completion late in the fourth quarter of the SEC championship game, with Tennessee trying to tie the score in a 21-14 loss to LSU.

But he runs hard, at 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, in the style of Big Ten Conference runners. He's also a good receiver, with 35 receptions for 314 yards.

"He presses it downhill, then bounces and cuts back, UW linebackers coach Dave Doeren said.

Foster has played in 35 games, with 22 starts, and his knowledge of the offense is almost on par with Ainge.

"He has matured a lot in the last couple years," Ainge said. "He's a really smart football player now. He's not just trying to go out there and be athletic. He prepares, he understands the game. If I were to screw something up, he knows."

Although Foster may feel he has the most to prove in the bowl game, he's not alone among his teammates. Redemption for last season's performance was a big theme among the Volunteers during early bowl practices.

 "One fumble toward the end of the game isn't necessarily the reason we lost," Ainge said. "The reason we lost is we put ourselves in bad down and distance, we had too many wasted plays.

"Definitely, when you're as competitive as we are, I'm sure (Foster) feels like it's a chance for him (to redeem himself), just like it's a chance for me, just like it's a chance for everybody that's as competitive as we are by nature."