Tennessee (3-4, 0-4 SEC) at No. 17 South Carolina (6-2, 4-2 SEC)
Kickoff: Saturday, noon ET (ESPN)
Spread: South Carolina by 14
Watchability: These are two teams that really need a win. Neither has played very well the past couple of weeks, so they’ll both be looking to get back on track. It might not be the best game of the day, but Tennessee coach Derek Dooley could be fighting for his job, so that’s one intriguing angle to this contest.
Shining stars: Tennessee -- WR Cordarrelle Patterson. Most of the preseason talk was about QB Tyler Bray and WR Justin Hunter, but it’s been Patterson who has been the Vols’ biggest threat on offense. The junior college transfer leads the team with 137.9 all-purpose yards per game. He’s scored a receiving, rushing and kickoff return TD this season. South Carolina -- DE Jadeveon Clowney. He can be simply unblockable at times. The 6-foot-5, 260-pound sophomore ranks second in the SEC in sacks (7.5). The Vols will have to account for him on every offensive play. He anchors a DL that will look to rattle Bray and keep Tennessee’s potentially explosive offense limited.
Who could steal the show: Tennessee -- LT Antonio Richardson. He’ll be the main one in charge of limiting Clowney. The sophomore has been impressive in his first season as a starter for the Vols, but this will be his biggest challenge yet. He would catch the attention of a lot of NFL teams if he contains Clowney. South Carolina -- RB Marcus Lattimore. The star RB was limited with a hip injury last week against Florida. He ended the day with just 13 yards on three carries. Facing a Tennessee run defense that ranks No. 86 nationally might be just what Lattimore needs to get back on track.
You going? Ranking the road trip: It’s a decent SEC game and it’s early, so head on over to Columbia, see if the Vols can hang in there and then find a good tailgate to watch the rest of Saturday’s games.
Magic number for Tennessee: 43.3. That’s how many points the Vols have given up per game in SEC play. The offense has played well at times, but the defense must play better for the Vols to have a chance in this one.
Magic number for South Carolina: 2. Though the Vols hold a 22-6-2 edge in this series overall, the Gamecocks have won the past two matchups.
The game comes down to: With their coach on the hot seat and this being the last ranked team on the schedule, the Vols will come out playing with urgency in this one. That won’t be enough. South Carolina, using Lattimore and QB Connor Shaw, will find plenty of room to run against a porous Tennessee defense. Clowney and the South Carolina defense will keep Tennessee’s offense in check.
Eye on College Football's take: The Gamecocks' multi-year run as the SEC's most Jekyll-at-home-and-Hyde-on-the-road team continued apace with their turnover-fueled meltdown in Gainesville, but that's only all the more reason for Tennessee to worry about their trip to Columbia this week. If Connor Shaw reappears as the quarterback who eviscerated Missouri and Georgia at Williams-Brice as opposed to the one who looked lost at LSU and Florida, the Vol pass defense -- 96th in FBS yardage allowed, 66th in opponent's quarterback rating -- is going to be carved apart, and Derek Dooley's team won't stand a chance. Of course, they won't have one anyway if Tyler Bray doesn't lift his game far beyond what he's shown in SEC play so far this season; the junior is averaging an utterly mediocre 6.2 yards per-attempt through his four conference appearances, with his 6-to-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio barely any better. The Vols' schedule hasn't given Bray any easy(ish) SEC tests just yet, but going on the road to face the Gamecocks doesn't qualify, either. -- Jerry Hinnen
Prediction: South Carolina 34, Tennessee 24
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