No. 7 Tennessee (9-2, 5-2 in the Southeastern Conference, ranked No. 8 in the College Football Playoff) is set to face Vanderbilt (6-5, 3-4) on Saturday at 12 p.m. EST, airing on ABC.
BetMGM has placed the odds in favor of Tennessee by 11.5 points. In their long-standing rivalry, Tennessee holds the upper hand with a series record of 80 wins against Vanderbilt’s 32, with five ties.
What does this game mean? For Tennessee, a solid victory is essential to enhance their chances of a spot in the College Football Playoff and potentially secure a home game in December. The Volunteers, looking to continue their dominance over in-state rival Vanderbilt, seek to uphold an impressive record following a decade where they often struggled against them. On the flip side, Vanderbilt’s eligibility for bowl games marks a significant achievement for head coach Clark Lea in his fourth season at the university, and a win against Tennessee would not only be a personal milestone for him but also the Commodores’ first winning season since 2013.
One of the critical matchups to watch will be Tennessee’s robust and aggressive defense clashing with Vanderbilt’s offense, spearheaded by quarterback Diego Pavia. Having earned the title of the 2023 Conference USA offensive player of the year during his time at New Mexico State, Pavia has previously led Vanderbilt to a stunning upset against then-No. 1 Alabama and currently ranks seventh in the SEC for throwing 16 touchdown passes. In contrast, Tennessee boasts one of the top defenses in the nation, allowing only 13.1 points per game and managing to keep 10 out of 11 opponents below 20 points this season. They also rank impressively in rushing defense, conceding merely 98.8 yards on the ground per game and holding rivals to a 28.8% success rate on third down attempts.
Coming from Tennessee, keep an eye on running back Dylan Sampson, who has broken school records with a staggering 22 rushing touchdowns, leading the SEC. He’s topped 100 rushing yards in nine of his 11 games this season, narrowly missing the mark by just eight yards against Oklahoma. In their last match against UTEP, he only needed 11 carries to rack up 77 yards in a decisive victory of 56-0.
For Vanderbilt, tight end Eli Stowers is another player to watch. Stowers leads the SEC in receiving yards among tight ends with an impressive 568 yards, ranking sixth among Power Five conferences and tenth across all FBS tight ends. Notably, he is the first Vanderbilt tight end since at least 1996 to achieve multiple games of over 100 receiving yards in a single season.
As for some interesting facts, Tennessee has managed to win the last five matchups in the rivalry, although two victories were vacated due to NCAA sanctions during the Jeremy Pruitt era. They have faced off yearly since 1945, making for a historic matchup that began in 1895. The Volunteers are on the verge of achieving their second 10-win season in just two years, striving to join an exclusive group of Tennessee coaches with multiple 10-win campaigns. This game marks Tennessee’s first daytime road outing of the season. Vanderbilt, meanwhile, is looking to break a two-game losing streak and will be competing for the eighth time against a team currently ranked or receiving votes in the national Top 25.