Georgia Game Preview
If you were a Kentucky fan, it was hard to watch. It was a thorough beating from start to finish. But let's face it. It had to happen. The message had to be sent. Kentucky's coaching staff has been negative recruiting against the Vols since they've been there. Their fans deluded themselves into thinking they had passed Tennessee and couldn't help but to tell Vol fans that Tennessee would never be elite again, even as they continued to lose to Tennessee almost every year. Their highly touted NFL draft pick said that UT didn't play real football. If that wasn't enough, they had the audacity to desecrate Tennessee's rock. And then throw in the fact that Mark Stoops' brother scapegoated Heupel to spare his own brother at Oklahoma for good measure. Yes, that beating had to happen. Kentucky had to be sent back to the kiddie table, just like Missouri and South Carolina were last year. Enough about the Big Blue losers. Tennessee is about to play in it's biggest regular season game in 21 years.
Some are saying this is the biggest regular season game in the history of Tennessee football and I can certainly see their argument. For me, it's slightly below the 2001 Florida game. Only by a hair though. The 2001 Florida game was the last game of the regular season and it was for the SEC East Championship. Either team would have faced Miami in the Rose Bowl for the national championship if they had beaten a 3 loss LSU team. Those of us who lived it certainly know how that turned out and the younger fans are also no doubt aware. But the buildup to that game was insane. It had been moved back due to 9/11 and you could see that matchup building as the season played out. Tennessee dropped the Hobbnail Boot on October 6th and a week later Florida dropped a close one to Auburn. But everyone knew it was going to come down to that last game. The buildup was pretty much all season long. Oddly enough, Tennessee was actually a bigger underdog in that game (+17.5) than they are Saturday.
The buildup for this game has been bigger I would say but much shorter lived. This only became a must see game 3 weeks ago after Tennessee beat Alabama. From a ranking standpoint, this is the biggest regular season game of all time. There haven't been many 1 vs. 2 regular season AP matchups in the history of college football. The only 1 vs. 2 AP matchup Tennessee has ever been a part of happened against Florida State the night they won the 1998 national championship. This will be the first for Tennessee during the regular season and I believe the same is true for Georgia. There is another layer that makes this game even bigger. While Georgia is number 1 in the AP and Coaches Polls, Tennessee is number 1 in the College Football Playoff poll. This will be the first ever 1 vs. 1 matchup of that kind. This isn't just a huge game for Tennessee and Georgia. It's the biggest regular season game in college football since 2019 LSU vs. Alabama. That game had almost 17 million viewers with a peak of almost 21 million. This game should approach, if not surpass those numbers.
While the magnitude of this game is extremely high, Tennessee has already had the national stage twice this year and were unfazed by the moment both times. Georgia hasn't had the national stage yet this year but they did open the season with a big game in their blowout win over Oregon. While Georgia has been on the big stage several times the last few year, this will be the first time this season. Whatever disadvantage that might present will be offset by their home field advantage though. Sanford Stadium has a pretty good SEC atmosphere but it isn't in the upper echelon of the league. I'm sure they will be loud and no doubt this will be the most hostile environment Tennessee has played in since the LSU crowd was pretty much taken out of the game from the opening kickoff. As it has been pointed out all week though, Tennessee always uses a silent count. That coupled with the tempo will probably neutralize the crowd.
An interesting note to point out. Tennessee has never lost while holding a number 1 ranking.
This game has been broken down every day all week on every sports talk station and on every national college football TV show. I'm not sure I can add anything in depth to what's already out there so I'll just tell you how I think it'll play out.
I don't think this is a good matchup for Georgia. Their defense has great stats but so did Alabama's and Kentucky's. Tennessee's offense is so good and Heupel is so great at finding mismatches, I don't think Tennessee will have much trouble scoring. As long as the offensive line protects Hendon Hooker. The offensive line has played really well all year though so I think they will be just fine. No one has figured out how to stop Tennessee's offense this year. Not even the greatest coach of all time who tried to do it with the most talented roster in college football. Kirby Smart is a very good coach, but he's not Saban. Georgia has a very talented team, but Alabama had more talent. Plus Nolan Smith being out is a huge loss for Georgia. I think Georgia will play man and I think Heupel will scheme some guys wide open at least a few times. I think Tennessee's running game will do enough to keep Georgia's defense off balance. I think Tennessee's tempo will be a major problem for their defense, just like it has been for every other defense. And I think Cedric Tillman will have a huge game while Georgia focuses on Hyatt early on.
Georgia's offense has been really good against a light schedule. Brock Bowers is the best tight end in the country along with Darnell Washington. Stetson Bennett is actually older than Hendon Hooker and has a very good command of Georgia's offense. He's a very good athlete as well. Georgia's main attack is throwing to their tight ends and getting Bowers the ball any way they can. They haven't been a great rushing team compared to their standards. But I think this is another bad matchup for Georgia. Tennessee's defense has quietly gotten healthy and they've quietly gotten confidence. They smothered Kentucky last week and forced Levis into 3 interceptions. Georgia has been prone to turnovers with 3 interceptions and 6 lost fumbles on the year. They've also given up 7 sacks. Keep in mind, they've been playing a light schedule for the most part. Their offense is great at times, and other times they are sloppy and inconsistent. I think Tennessee shuts down Georgia's run. I think they pressure Bennett often. I think they will make plays to their tight ends but I think Tennessee keeps Georgia in front of them for the most part. I think Tennessee will force a couple of turnovers. I think Tennessee's defense makes a statement in this game.
I think Tennessee gets an early lead and puts the pressure on Georgia. The Bulldogs will battle back but I think Tennessee keeps them at arms length before finally pulling away late. I know this sounds crazy. This is just how I see it playing out.
Tennessee (+8.5) 45
Georgia 24
In other games...
Appalachian State 34
Coastal Carolina (+3) 33
Alabama 39
LSU (+13.5) 31
Kansas State (+2.5) 38
Texas 34
Clemson 31
Notre Dame (+3.5) 29
TCU (-8.5) 47
Texas Tech 34
Wake Forest (-4.5) 42
North Carolina State 32
Last Week...4-2(4-2 ATS) Overall Record...36-19(30-24-1 ATS)
That's all I have for this week. As always, I appreciate everyone who takes the time to read this. You will always have my thanks. Cherish every second of football. Only 3 games left in the regular season after Saturday. Especially cherish the 2022 Tennessee Volunteers. They make it look easy, but seasons like these don't grow on trees. This is a special year even by 90's standards. I know we can never forget the Dark Ages as much as we would like to, but going through that has made this season feel euphoric. Win or lose Saturday, this will still be Tennessee's best season since 2001 in all likelihood and maybe the best one since 1998. Considering where we've been, I can live with that.
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Have a great weekend and stay safe everyone. Go Vols and God Bless!