It’s game week for Tennessee football and Illinois. In less than seven days, the Vols and Illini will meet in Nashville to square off in the Music City Bowl. As of Christmas Eve, the betting odds have been refreshed as more and more bets come in.
As of Dec. 24, 2025, at 5 p.m. ET, Tennessee is a 2.5-point favorite. This is a significant drop from the near touchdown mark that the Vols opened up at. On the moneyline, UT is at -140, while Illinois is at +116.
So far, 76% of the money and 81% of the bets on FanDuel have been placed on Tennessee covering the spread. This season, the Vols are 5-7 against the spread while the Illini are 8-4. Both teams finished with 8-4 on-the-field records.
While the spread has dramatically moved, the over/under point total has stayed put. That remains set at 61.5 combined points. This season, Tennessee’s games have gone over in 8-of-12 matches. Illinois’ have in just 5-of-12.
1️⃣ sleep until Christmas
6️⃣ sleeps until @MusicCityBowl #GBO 🍊 pic.twitter.com/ppg9XAFShR— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) December 24, 2025
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Illinois enters the Music City Bowl with an 8-4 (5-4 Big 10) record. The Fighting Illini’s best win came against USC, while they dropped games against Indiana, Ohio State, Washington and Wisconsin. Tennessee football enters the matchup 8-4 (4-4 SEC) with losses against Georgia, Alabama, Oklahoma and Vanderbilt.
Kickoff between Tennessee and Illinois is at 5:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Dec. 30, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville. ESPN is broadcasting the game.
Tennessee will wear white jerseys in the game as the designated away team, as well. However, the color of the britches is yet to be determined.
Tennessee is 1-2 in its three previous trips to the Music City Bowl. The Vols wore orange uniforms in their loss against North Carolina in 2010. Tennessee wore Smokey Grey uniforms in its lone win in the Music City Bowl back in 2016, before wearing white uniforms in a loss to Purdue in 2021.
