Tennessee football will be back inside Neyland Stadium to square off with New Mexico State tomorrow evening. The Vols and Aggies will meet in Knoxville at 4:15 p.m. ET with the game airing on SEC Network.
Before kick-off, I dove into the numbers, with the help of UT’s game notes, to get a better look at what to expect in the game.
Here are three numbers to keep in mind as you’re watching the matchup.
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703
Tennessee football is home to one of the best-performing freshmen receivers in the country this year. Redshirt freshman Braylon Staley’s 703 receiving yards leads all Power Four freshmen. It also ranks fourth in the conference of any receiver, with his teammate Chris Brazzell in second.
Staley also leads all Power Four freshmen in receiving touchdowns. He’s caught five this season, good for a tie for sixth in the SEC. Brazzell is tied for first with eight.
Staley also is second among Power Four freshmen in receptions at 52.
0
Tennessee has played New Mexico State 0 times in program history. It is also just the third time ever that the Vols will play a team from the state of New Mexico.
Tennessee hosted New Mexico in Neyland Stadium in 1983 and 1986. UT won both games.
The Vols do have a strong connection on its roster to New Mexico State, though. Running back Star Thomas played for NMSU after junior college and before his time at Duke. He was teammates with Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia with the Aggies.
69.1
There is nobody in college football running the ball worse than New Mexico State this season. According to ESPN, the Aggies’ 69.1 yards per game on the ground is dead last among FBS programs.
The result has been just six rushing touchdowns. This is tied for the third-worst mark in the country. The longest rush was bounced for 29 yards, the fourth-worst mark in the country. Ironically, Tennessee opponents Mississippi State and Florida, are the two worst in that category at 25 and 27 yards, respectively.
NMSU’s leading rusher is Kadarius Calloway. On 86 attempts, he’s posted 313 yards on the ground for three touchdowns.
