Tennessee is coming off its best win of the season, knocking off No. 18 Kentucky. This week, the challenge gets even harder as the No. 1 team in the country comes to town.
Each week, the RTI team will provide game predictions for Tennessee’s weekly opponent.
We move on to Georgia.
Ric Butler: Tennessee is walking into this game with the expectation that they will win and defeat the top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs. Josh Heupel said it, Matthew Butler said it, and more throughout the week. I believe that the mentality of this Tennessee team is that they can compete with and beat anyone on any Saturday. I, on the other hand, do not share that same expectation for this Tennessee game in particular. But regardless, there are several fascinating conversations at play here in this game. When looking at the matchup, it is a true test of strength vs strength. Georgia’s defense has been as sturdy as a brick wall this year, giving up an average of 6.6 points this year. That’s right, on average, Georgia is not even allowing a touchdown score with the extra point per game, through nine games this season. On the flip side, though, Tennessee’s offense is right up there in terms of scoring and efficiency. Tennessee is scoring, on average, 38.2 points per game. I do think that Tennessee will give Georgia looks like they haven’t seen before, and I do think that Heupel will certainly have a few tricks up his sleeve, as he usually does. But the thing about Georgia is that they are scoring 38.4 points per game on average, a hair more than Tennessee. The Bulldogs have so many effective ways to score, from the offense to the defense to special teams. Don’t sleep on Georgia’s offense though, even through a strange quarterback situation this year with injuries. Georgia has playmakers all over the field, especially at the tight end position, meaning that Tennessee’s linebacker core is once again going to have to step up and make a tackle on the first hit. For the Tennessee offense, its going to be about getting some sort of ground game going, even though it likely won’t be traditional. The Bulldogs are giving up about 80 yards per game on the ground, which means that Tennessee will need to get creative. I can see the Vols using wide receivers in motion or just creatively in general, along with their running backs and Hendon Hooker. There’s nothing wrong with losing to the best team in the nation, as long as you prove something along the way. Can Tennessee prove that they can fight with the best for 60 minutes? We will find out soon. There’s no doubt about it, this is going to be Tennessee’s toughest challenge of the season, on the 100th annual Homecoming Celebration nonetheless. It should be a fun day on Rocky Top, but I do think that Tennessee will fall to the top-ranked Bulldogs.
Game Prediction: Georgia 45, Tennessee 20
Ryan Schumpert: Georgia is really really good. That’s probably an overly obvious statement as they’re the No. 1 team in the country, but think of this Georgia team as the Alabama teams of the past decade. Georgia is otherworldly dominant on defense with opponents averaging just six points per game. They don’t have elite talent on the offensive end — in part due to injuries at receiver — but still the Bulldogs have been a head above everyone else in the country this season. They are the odds on favorite to win the National Championship. So, yes, the challenge is daunting Saturday for an overachieving Tennessee team. Here’s where I think Tennessee matches up well — at least to have more success than anyone has had against Georgia’s defense. Driving the ball down the field in seven to 12 plays against the Bulldogs is nearly impossible. Not just for Tennessee but for anyone in the country. If you drive the ball down the field for two touchdowns against Georgia that’s a massive success. If you want to beat Georgia’s defense you better do it over the top with the long pass. That’s the only deficiency the Bulldogs’ defense has had all season. That works perfectly for Tennessee. Against the best opponents on their schedule, the Vols have struggled to run or drive the ball down the field. They have had success creating chunk plays. That’s why I think Tennessee scores more against Georgia than anyone else has this year. Still, the Bulldogs offense does a lot of the things Kentucky does, just at a higher level. The Vols’ defense is going to be on the field a lot of snaps for the fourth straight game. Maybe Tennessee can jump out fast, get Neyland Stadium into the game and make it an entertaining first half. It’s just as likely the Vols go three-and-out on their first two drives and Georgia is up 14-0 six minutes into the game. Either way, I think this ends with a lopsided Georgia win, and there’s no shame in that for Tennessee.
Game Prediction: Georgia 42, Tennessee 17
