Tennessee-Kentucky: Preview and prediction for the rivalry game
The Tennessee Volunteers will do battle with the Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington on Saturday night. The Vols are coming off a loss at the hands of Alabama while the Wildcats are coming off a bye week. This game has tilted in the Vols favor for the last 40 years, but anything is possible in the SEC and the Vols will need to put forth a great effort to secure their first road win of the season. This game means a lot more to Kentucky fans than it has ever meant to Tennessee fans. When Kentucky wins there is mass hysteria throughout the Bluegrass state, but when the Vols win that’s just the bare minimum expectation for a Tennessee fan. That’s why I never really look forward to this matchup. When the Vols win it’s never cause for celebration it’s more just relief that we didn’t lose to the joke that is Kentucky football. Don’t get me wrong every win is important in the SEC, but they don’t all carry the same weight. With all that being said let’s take a look at three keys to victory for the Vols come Saturday night.
Contain Ray Davis
If you told me to pick one key that would guarantee a victory for the Vols Saturday night this would be it. Ray Davis is pretty much the only thing that scares anyone on Kentucky’s offense right now. He is second in the SEC in rushing yards, but when the options behind him wouldn’t sniff the field at Ohio Wesleyan it’s not all that surprising. Kentucky’s second-leading rusher, Jutahn Mcclain has fewer yards on the ground than Joe Milton on the season. Let me make sure you understand, Kentucky’s second-leading rusher has fewer yards on the season than the Vol’s QB who has the elusiveness and speed of a sailboat. The Vols have no reason to be scared of anyone behind Davis, and no reason to be scared of Devin Leary throwing the ball. Leary has completed just barely over half of his passes this year in an offense that doesn’t put too much on the Quarterback. The Vols should be focused on getting in the backfield all night. Whether it be stuffing Ray Davis or sacking Devin Leary, if the Vols live in the Kentucky backfield they should cruise to a comfortable win.
Finish Drives
Most of the Vol’s struggles on the road so far this season have been due to shooting themselves in the foot on offense. Last week the Vols should’ve had Alabama on the ropes in the first quarter, but the inability to finish drives with touchdowns kept the Crimson Tide in the game. The play-calling in the red zone has been frustrating all year, and most of it seems to be stemming from Joe Milton’s inability to throw balls over the middle in tight windows. However, if the coaching staff is going to continue to roll with Joe Milton they have to call plays that utilize his strengths. Just Because you aren’t comfortable with your Quarterback throwing over the middle doesn’t mean that you have to call the most vanilla run plays of all time down inside the 10-yard line. Josh Heupel and his offensive coaching staff need to get more creative in the red zone and that’s the bottom line. Either that or play a damn Quarterback that you trust to make throws in tight windows. Listen I think the Vols will be able to score from outside the red zone a few times against the Wildcats on Saturday night, but the Vols will get to the red zone multiple times as well. When this happens, it would be nice to see even the slightest bit of creativity to come away with touchdowns instead of field goals.
Turn the Page
There is no doubt that the Vols were unhappy with how they played in the second half last week. However, any residual head-hanging or feeling sorry for yourself better have stopped during practice this week. If the Vols go into this game Saturday night still hungover and disappointed from the loss at Alabama things could get nerve-wracking in a hurry. There’s still plenty to play for this season, and the SEC East could still be won. The Vols have got to realize that the season didn’t end last Saturday, and I hope that was one of Josh Heupel’s main talking points throughout the week. If the team comes out and lays a massive egg I would have to wonder if they were unable to turn the page from last week’s embarrassing loss. However, I believe the Vols will come out with a great effort come Saturday night, and any residual pouting from the Alabama game has been stomped on by the leadership amongst the players.
Prediction
There are two main reasons that I believe the Vols will take care of business handily Saturday night against the Wildcats. First off the Vols do have the mental edge over the Wildcats much like the Florida Gators have over the Vols. Secondly, I think the Vols are out to prove something in this game. They want to prove that they can win on the road. The offense wants to prove that they are capable of putting up big numbers. The defense wants to prove that they are one of the best run defenses in the country against the SEC’s 2nd leading rusher. I think the Vols go out and prove all these things. Ray Davis will be contained, The Vol running game will be back above 200 yards, and Joe Milton finally plays two decent games in a row throwing for 250 yards.