Tennessee football is back at Neyland Stadium for the final time in the regular season as the Vols host UTEP on Saturday afternoon. The Vols are looking to bounce back from their second loss of the season a week ago at Georgia to remain in the College Football Playoff race.
Each week, the RTI team will provide game predictions for Tennessee’s matchup.
We move on to the UTEP Miners.
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Ric Butler
This week’s competition will not be like last week’s but the game still matters for Tennessee. It’s very unlikely that Tennessee is going to lose this game, so it’s about style points now.
Is the committee going to be impressed by a 50-point win over UTEP? No, certainly not enough to slide the Vols into the playoffs based on that alone. But what if Tennessee takes that momentum and carries it into a 21-point victory over Vanderbilt? Well, now you’re talking about a Tennessee team that put up 71 total points in the final two weeks of the season. Maybe you can trick the committee with some sort of thinking along those lines.
I’m excited to see some of the rotation into Tennessee’s depth this game but I also think it’s important to build up the starters’ confidence with a string of ultra-successful drives or stands. Not that I have a fear of Tennessee losing confidence after Georgia, but it’s always proper to take advantage of the opportunity when you can. We’ll see if Tennessee comes out with some swagger and sets the tone early and often against the Miners on this one.
I really don’t have much of a preview for this game. I’ve spent a chunk of the year rambling on with these giant predictions so I’ll get you to my RTI cohorts’ predictions a little bit quicker this time around. I think Tennessee dominates and I’m not too shy in saying that. But hey, go put up some style points, Tennessee. String up a conversation-worthy final two weeks of play.
Prediction: Tennessee 49, UTEP 6
Jack Foster
UTEP isn’t quite Kent State, but they’re close. This is going to be a mauling. I expect Tennessee to score early and often and cover comfortably. The Vols, even against UTEP, are looking for style points as the first team out. They can get them against UTEP.
The biggest thing to watch in this game is if Tennessee’s passing offense can continue to build momentum. Nico Iamaleava has looked much better in the last month, but the receivers have been inconsistent. A big day out of one or two of Tennessee’s wideouts would be a welcomed sight.
Dylan Sampson could obviously run all over UTEP if Tennessee wanted him to, but with this game figuring to be so lopsided, I doubt Tennessee gives Sampson his usual workload, at least they shouldn’t. This means we will likely see plenty of Peyton Lewis, which I am excited about, and potentially more Cam Seldon.
The fact of the matter with this game is I don’t think UTEP will score a touchdown if Tennessee doesn’t want them to. This defense is too overpowering for bottom-tier G5 schools such as UTEP. While I don’t think Tennessee’s offense scores on every single drive, they’ll score enough to get into the high 50s, and I’m predicting the Miners don’t get into the endzone.
Prediction: Tennessee 59, UTEP 3
Ryan Schumpert
There’s not too much to get to in this prediction for Tennessee. UTEP has been pretty terrible all season and they enter this matchup 2-8 (2-5 CUSA) despite earning a win last week. Tennessee’s offensive style traditionally overwhelms even good group of five teams. UTEP is better than Kent State but they are still a very bad team.
What I am interested to see here is how Tennessee balances trying to put together a dominant performance with also resting some starters and trying to make sure the put together a convincing scoring performance. With Tennessee on the bubble, they need to win very convincingly. I don’t think a massive victory does a ton to to boost its case but a lethargic win could hurt it.
With that, I think it’s important that Tennessee comes to fast and dominates in the opening quarter. They don’t need to lead 37-0 through one like they did against Kent State but 21-0 would be a nice and convincing start. Pairing that with some explosive plays in the passing game would be good for a Tennessee offense lacking consistency.
Tennessee takes care of business with ease in this one.
Prediction: Tennessee 59, UTEP 7
