Tennessee vs. Alabama -- The Volquest staff picks

Rocky Top is buzzing as Alabama and Tennessee get together on the third Saturday of October for a monumental showdown. Saturday marks the first time in 33 years that the Vols and the Tide meet as unbeaten teams. It’s the second time in that span that they are meeting as top 10 teams.

So how will things go, the Volquest staff weighs in with their picks.

Brent’s pick

Let’s face it, I’m not exactly on a hot streak here. I thought the LSU game would be a real challenge. Wrong. Of course I was full of doubt about the Florida game given the history of the series. (not making a pick — weak sauce)

So what about Saturday? Let’s start with this — Tennessee absolutely can win this game. 

That’s a sentence I haven’t typed in a long time at Volquest. I mean a long time. But Tennessee can win. The Vols are a good football team who I believe can compete with anyone in the country including the Crimson Tide. 

Now, picking this game is hard because you don’t know what Alabama is going to do at quarterback. The doubt on Bryce Young playing seems to be not as strong if you listen to Nick Saban. Others suggest Young hasn’t practice with the offense in any team period. Tide practices are closed so it’s unclear. If Young can’t play it will be Jalen Milroe with freshman Ty Simpson waiting in the wings. Milroe’s legs are the best part of his game. 

He’s a terrific runner. Much better than Jayden Daniels last week for LSU. We know how Tennessee and running quarterbacks have gone. Throw in the Tide’s best player in Jahymr Gibbs and you give Alabama the advantage. 

Alabama’s defense has been terrific against the run. But let’s face it outside of the quarter plus Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers played before getting hurt, the Tide defense hasn’t been really tested at the quarterback position. And Ewers was lighting the Tide defense up.

That makes me want to give Tennessee the edge. After all, the team with the best quarterback has a big advantage in most match ups.

I think special teams is a push and I’m stuck with the dilemma I have been stuck with all week. 

Am I really going to pick Tennessee to upset the Tide? 

Bottom line is simple it comes down to whether or not offensively Tennessee can somewhat neutralize Will Anderson and finish in the redzone with touchdowns. 

Defensively it comes down to tackling and whether the Vol defense can limit the big plays. 

It’s going to be a slugfest and if Bryce Young doesn’t play and the Vols get to their 9th straight game with 30 points I think this town loses its mind with a Vol win.

I’m just not sure the Vols can get there.

Alabama 28 Tennessee 27

Austin’s pick

It’s a big fight feel on Rocky Top. It’s felt different the last couple of weeks to me. The sirens as Tennessee pulled up as the evil enemy last weekend in Baton Rouge had a different vibe and this week does too

I’ve talked to a bunch of people this week and I don’t see Bryce Young playing. Maybe my people will be wrong but he hasn’t practiced all week and if he isn’t playing then this thing takes on a different vibe.

Jalen Milroe is a phenomenal athlete and Tennessee will have to do a good job of not letting him get loose. He has limitations but he is still very capable of beating the Vols.

The tough part for me is Tennessee may not be the favorite in this game but they are the media darling and Alabama knows it. They have a history of taking the souls of media darlings. If Tennessee is going to win this game for the first time since 2006, they will have to go out and just take it. Do it with no regard for anyone else because that’s exactly what Alabama will do if given the chance.

The atmosphere will be unbelievable all day long and I think that’s why it’s paramount Tennessee get off to a good start just like they did last week.

Hendon Hooker has been so good at not turning the football over and I think that will have to be very much the same way this week because Alabama is super opportunistic.

My pick is rolling with the notion that Young is out. If he plays it changes the way the game is played.

Without him, I’m rolling with the Vols close.

Tennessee 34 Alabama 27

Rob’s pick

It’s been so long since I’ve put any real thought into picking the winner of this game that it feels downright strange to be doing it this year, but here we are.

If Bryce Young doesn’t play, or plays and is obviously limited, I like Tennessee easily.

If Young is completely healthy (which seems dubious) I still like Tennessee in a barnburner.

Tennessee’s offense just has me sucked in. The Vols are No. 1 in the country in total offense (547.8 ypg) and second in scoring offense (46.8 ppg). They may not hit those averages on Saturday, but they’re going to be by far the best offense that Alabama has seen this year and it’s not even close.

The Crimson Tide have put up some fantastic defensive numbers this year, but they’ve also done so against some pretty pedestrian offenses and a couple of back-up quarterbacks in what would have otherwise been their biggest tests.

I think Tennessee will score 30+. Without a healthy Young, I don’t think Bama can keep up.

The biggest question for me is can Tennessee run the football effectively enough to make its fast tempo a factor? When this offense starts stringing together a few first downs that’s when the tempo really starts to wear on a defense.

The Vols don’t need to average 5.4 yards per carry like they did last week, but they’ll need to do better than the 2.4 ypc that Alabama is currently giving up.

Tennessee’s secondary, like it is every week, is a huge concern. But with Young’s status uncertain and Milroe far from a polished passer it’s not the concern this week that it might otherwise be.

TENNESSEE 38, ALABAMA 34

Eric’s pick

This is wild. Tennessee and Alabama – both undefeated and ranked inside the top-six. As Josh Heupel said this week, ‘these types of games are why you come to coach here, why you come to play here.’ The Vols have been the media darling of the week, and it’s deserved. This is a good football team. Credit to Heupel, his staff and those players.

As I’ve said countless times this week, Tennessee can win this game. We haven’t said that about this game in at least the past six tries. But will it win this football game? I really don’t know. That’s why you play the game and I’m fired up to see two good football teams go at it tomorrow.

There are a few unknowns heading into this matchup. Will Bryce Young play for The Tide? If so, how healthy is he? Regardless of what Nick Saban has said this week, I’m not buying that he practiced a ton or took reps with the ones. He could still play, but again, will he be limited in any fashion? The Vols must get after him regardless.

It feels as if Cedric Tillman won’t be available again, considering he’s not 100 percent. You want #4 out there, no doubt, but that’s not a huge issue for me. This passing game has stepped up in his absence and I believe it will rise to the occasion once again. All eyes will be on pregame warmups either way.

This front-seven is good and I’m concerned about winning the consistent 1-on-1 matchups with Will Anderson Jr. or Dallas Turner on the edge. A player like Anderson makes everyone – literally everyone – better on that side of the ball. Jahymir Gibbs and his versatility will create problems for Tennessee’s linebackers and secondary. I believe there’s opportunities for Tennessee in the passing game if you protect Hendon Hooker.  

As you can see. I’m back-and-forth. I didn’t think I would be this conflicted at the beginning of the week. I believe Tennessee can win this football game. I truly do and will not be surprised if that’s the case come Saturday night. There’s just a few more things about this Alabama team, top-to-bottom, that I trust more when comparing it to Tennessee.

I’ll gladly take the flack if this prediction is wrong. Heck, I welcome it. But give me Alabama in a nailbiter.

ALABAMA 38, TENNESSEE 35