A College Football Odds Analysis of the Tennessee Volunteers

Posted by Daniel Strum on Thursday,September 24, 2015 8:17, EDT in

In Week 2, the #23 Tennessee Volunteers hosted the #19 Oklahoma Sooners – and had a two-touchdown lead going into the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for NCAA Football betting fans, the Volunteer offense basically disappeared and the defense fell apart. The Sooners scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime and then two more touchdowns in the first two overtimesto cruise out of Neyland Stadium with a shocking 31-24 win.

A College Football Odds Analysis of the Tennessee Volunteers

Tennessee has a young team. So how would they play facing a Western Carolina team that had a lot more reason to be interested in the action than Tennessee did? They could have struggled against the Catamounts, much like Auburn struggled against FCS foe Jacksonville State a week ago.

The answer was that they came out ready to go. For most of the first 40 minutes, the Volunteers were firing on all cylinders. Western Carolina could not move the ball at all against the first defense unit for Tennessee. Meanwhile, the Volunteers moved the ball smoothly on offense and also picked up two special teams touchdowns, one on Evan Berry’s kickoff return and another on Alvin Kamara’s punt return.

What About The Vols QB Situation?

How about the passing game? Well, there was no way that Western Carolina was going to stay with the Volunteer receivers, and so Tennessee let up fairly early. However, the Volunteers went 21 of 29 for 237 yards and three scores, with no interceptions. Starting quarterback Joshua Dobbs went 15 for 21 for 144 yards and two scores. Dobbs did push some dangerous throws into coverage.

Freshman Quinten Dormady came on in mop-up action and went 6 for 8 for 93 yards and a touchdown. True freshman Preston Williams was a welcome sight catching only three balls but gaining 98 yards and scoring twice. One question from the Tennessee-Oklahoma game was the effort that Tennessee was putting into tackling. The effort was there all night long. The only problem remaining was that Tennessee was not able to get one sack against the FCS Catamounts.

How’s the Kicker Scenario in Tennessee Looking Like?

Tennessee also continued to stick with sophomore kicker Aaron Medley. Medley had gone 2-for-5 in the first two weeks of the season, and there had been some talk that junior George Bullock would be doing the kicking. Medley did reward the coaching staff for their faith, going 2 for 2. However, the kicks were fairly easy (20 and 31 yards) – but they should help him build confidence. The problem that Medley continues to have is sending kickoffs out of bounds, which gives the other team tremendous field position. He had two against Western Carolina and how has three through three weeks – way too many.

He has the leg strength to send the ball through the end zone, and he can also make some high kicks into the corner to help Tennessee win the field position battle. Either way, the Volunteers should have plenty of confidence now, going into SEC East play against Florida next week. There is room for some new teams to elbow their way to the top of the Eastern Division, and the Volunteers want to be one of the contenders.