Tennessee football is set to round out its 2025 regular season slate on Saturday with a matchup against Vanderbilt inside Neyland Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET and will air on ESPN.
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 game.
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700
Tennessee has three players with over 700 receiving yards this season. This is the first time in school history that this has ever happened, and there’s still a regular-season game to be played.
Leading the way is Chris Brazzell at 926 yards. A solid game against the Commodores could see him go over the 1,000-yard mark. He’d be the third player (Cedric Tillman’s 1,081 in 2021 and Jalin Hyatt’s 1,267 in 2022) to do so under Josh Heupel at Tennessee. His mark also currently leads the SEC.
Behind Brazzell, redshirt freshman Braylon Staley has 771, and sophomore Mike Matthews has 712. All three receivers are inside the top 10 in the SEC.
6
Josh Heupel is 6-0 against Vandebilt in his coaching career. At Tennessee, he’s earned a 4-0 mark with none of the games particularly close, either. Last season’s 13-point win in Nashville was the narrowest mark Heupel has had in his time on Rocky Top. Every game has been against Clark Lea, as well, since he got the job with the Vols.
The biggest win came in 2022 in Nashville. In the first full game without Hendon Hooker, due to his ACL injury at South Carolina, Heupel commanded the team to a 56-0 drubbing. This came with Joe Milton III at quarterback on a rainy night.
Hepuel is also 2-0 against the Commodores as an assistant coach, both stemming back to his time at Missouri as an offensive coordinator.
62.45
Vanderbilt has had a great season. If you want to find an area that simply has to be better, the Commodores need to clean things up in the penalty department.
Vanderbilt averages 62.45 penalty yards per game this season. That is the 14th-fewest in the SEC and the 106th in the country. This comes on 6.73 penalties per game, as well.
In a rowdy and fired-up Neyland Stadium, this could play a huge factor.
