Tennessee opens as two-touchdown favorite at Vanderbilt
Tennessee on Sunday opened as a 14-point favorite for Saturday night’s game at Vanderbilt.
The Vols (9-2, 5-2 SEC) and Vanderbilt (5-6, 2-5) are scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time kickoff on Saturday (TV: SEC Network) at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville.
Tennessee was a three-touchdown favorite at South Carolina before losing 63-38 at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia.
“Obviously extremely disappointed with the performance and the outcome of the football game,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said Saturday night during his postgame press conference. “It’s everybody involved. Myself to our assistant coaches to our players. Had an opportunity here and didn’t take advantage of it. Credit to South Carolina. They did play well. Just disappointing that we didn’t perform better.”
Vols-Vandy: A closer look at the ‘Dores
Vanderbilt is suddenly playing for six wins and bowl eligibility after upsetting Kentucky and Florida in back-to-back weeks. The Commodores beat the Gators 31-24 in Nashville on Saturday, a week removed from snapping their 26-game SEC losing streak on with a 24-21 win on the road against a Kentucky team ranked 24th at the time.
Vandy had lost five straight entering the Kentucky game, after starting the season with three wins over their first four games, beating Hawaii, Elon and Northern Illinois.
Quarterback Mike Wright completed 10 of 16 passes for 108 yards, three touchdowns and an interception on Saturday against Florida. Ray Davis carried 30 times for 122 yards and a touchdown.
Tennessee-Vanderbilt: The Series
Tennessee holds a 78-33-5 lead in the all-time series with Vanderbilt, dating back to the first meeting of the two programs on October 21, 1892. Of Vandy’s 33 wins against the Vols, 18 came 1892 and 1926.
There were two ties and only two Tennessee wins over the first 23 games, before the Vols hired General Robert Neyland as head coach, with the emphasis on evening the rivalry with Vanderbilt. Since 1927, Tennessee is 76-15-2 against Vanderbilt.
The Vols lost five of seven to Vanderbilt between 2012 and 2018, when Derek Dooley (2012), Butch Jones (2013-2017) and Jeremy Pruitt (2018-2020) were running the program.
Tennessee has won its last three games against Vanderbilt. The Vols won 22 in a row between 1982 and 2004, before Vandy’s 28-24 win at Neyland Stadium in 2005. Tennessee responded six straight wins, before the ‘Dores won 41-18 in Nashville in 2012, leading to the firing of Dooley the following day.
