Tennessee and Vanderbilt meet on the college football gridiron for the 102nd time Saturday, at Vanderbilt Stadium. Despite the long history of battle between these two teams, the rivalry is hardly looked at outside of the state of Tennessee.
This will be the first time in recent memory that the Vols will be the underdog, not the Commodores. The Vols lead the overall series with a 69-27-5 record against the Commodores.
The Vols come in fresh off a shocking Nov. 8 loss at home to Wyoming and sit at 3-7, and only 1-5 in SEC play.
The Commodores come in as the favorite with a record of 6-4 overall and a 4-3 conference record. Vandy became bowl eligible for the first time since 1982 just last week with a 31-24 win over Kentucky.
Many are looking forward to the Texas Tech—Oklahoma game over the weekend, but this match-up should not be overlooked. Both teams will come in playing smash-mouth, SEC football.
These two teams have a genuine dislike for each other. Expect Tennessee to come out of the gates looking like a Top 25 team to take on their hated rivals from Nashville.
This rivalry has always been pushed to the waste side due to Vanderbilt's history of mediocrity. However, if you know anything about the history of head-to-head match-ups between these two teams, you'll know that this game is consistently a battle that comes down to the final drive.
This year's match-up will be no different. This will hardly be a road game for Tennessee. Historically, the Volunteer faithful has filled up the majority of Vanderbilt Stadium with orange. So the home-field advantage factor should immediately be taken out.
If you look at how these teams match-up, they are actually very similar, despite their records. Tennessee and Vanderbilt both struggle heavily on offense. Tennessee ranks at 117th in total offense, and Vanderbilt at 118th in total offense.
The defenses are the strong points of both teams. The first team to score 20 points will probably win this game.
The X-factor of this game will be the impact that Vanderbilt quarterback Chris Nickson brings to this game. Nickson can beat you with his arm or his legs, and Vanderbilt Coach Bobby Johnson will bring many different packages in on offense to throw off the Tennessee defense.
If the Tennessee defense can figure out a way to get Nickson out of his comfort zone, this game will turn into a defensive struggle where anything can happen.
If Tennessee had remotely any offense, I would give them the nod in this game. Unlike most years, however, Tennessee has so many things working against them in this game.
The players are psychologically messed up due to the firing of Phillip Fulmer. The lack of talent at quarterback has to face a Vanderbilt defense that has forced 16 interceptions as a team.
Tennessee will have another poor offensive showing to go along with a solid defensive performance. Rocky Top has seen better days, and Saturday will add to that with only their 2nd loss to Vanderbilt in over 20 years.
Prediction: Vandy over Tennessee 17-7
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about 1 month ago
How many "rivalries" have a 69-27-5 all-time record? I can't think of any.
Phillip Fulmer is 15-1 against Vandy and 7-0 in Nashville. Furthermore while 3 of the last 4 UT-Vandy games have been decided by a touchdown or less, it is also worth noting that the Vols have won by 20+ eight times since 1993. I would hardly consider that grounds for a rivalry.
Also neither team will come out playing "smash mouth" anything. Tennessee averages a measly 104 rushing yards and Vandy averages 151.
Then you point out that Tennessee is 117th in total offense and Vandy is 118th. Which you follow up by saying "if Tennessee had any offense, I would give them the nod in this game." Tennessee obviously doesn't have any offense, but Vanderbilt is actually worse as you pointed out. Plus Tennessee has a better defense in nearly every category including rushing yards allowed, passing yards allowed and points allowed per game.
You can pick Vandy if you want, but it won't be because they have any more offense than Tennessee does. Chris Nickson isn't any big threat for Tennessee's defense either. He averages 59 passing yards a game and 52 rushing. This is definitely not the "most underrated rivalry in college football." That must be a joke.
from about 1 month ago
Vanderbilt is ranked behind UT in offense, but that still doesn't necessarily mean Vandy's offense is actually worse head to head.
Vandy runs the spread option offense and even if you think Nickson won't be a factor, throw D.J. Moore into the mix and Vandy's offense suddenly has way more potential despite being ranked behind UT in offense.
As for the defense, it really helps your numbers out when you play Northern Illinois, UAB, and Wyoming. And how many point did UT put up against Wyoming and Northern Illinois? Yeah thats what I though and I guarantee you Vandy would put up way more than that due to their unique offense.
As for you saying its not a rivalry, thats your own opinion. But to me, a rivalry is not just defined by the total record in the series. Its defined by how the fans interpret the game and how the players interpret the game. I know many students from both schools that circle this game on the schedule every year regardless of the records.
But thanks for your input anway.
about 1 month ago
Maybe this is a rival game to the Dores...I doubt TN fans consider this a rival game. This is the annual Nov. speed bump for UT.
UTK rival games
1) Bama (the original 4 letter word)
2) Georgia
3) Florida
4) Auburn
about 1 month ago
another thought -- the fact that anyone would call this a rival game underscores the depth UT football has fallen...
about 1 month ago
this isn't just a rival in football, its a rival in all sports regardless of records. Now I'm not saying that its UT's biggest rivalry by any means.
I just know from personal experiences that the players and most of the fans consider this an important game for bragging rights every year.
about 1 month ago
I was at UT for 4 years -- I never heard anyone bragging about drumming Vandy. Never heard anyone bragging since graduating either.
about 1 month ago
You're splitting hairs here....an in-state matchup that has been going on for as long as this one has is always going to be considired a rivalry. And most of the time the underdog of the matchup, which is usually Vandy, plays better than their potential for this game.
I never said this is some huge rivalry and that its all people talk about when it rolls around. Notice I said its underrated which means it doesn't get the hype I believe it deserves.
Of course there's going to be a number of arrogant UT fans who discount the game with Vandy because they think their superior to Vandy in every way possible, but playing field is starting to get even and this game will get bigger and bigger every year as the Vandy football program continue to get bigger.
about 1 month ago
I do not believe this rivalry is underrated, as it is not a rivalry at all. It has been a bowl tune up for UT for years. Vanderbilt will never be on the same page as UT in football. Your column sounds the same as University of Memphis fans do when they try to make UT a rival of their own. That might be a possibility in basketball due to the recent success of both programs, but UT will not ever brag about beating the whipping post.
about 1 month ago
Haha just what I would expect from an average, arrogant UT fan. I swear UT has some of the most classless fans in all of sports. But I hate to break it to you but the playing field is starting to level out.
And let me please throw this out at you. When a thug from UT gets in trouble with the law for drugs, a Vandy graduate will be there to bail him out as his lawyer. When a UT bum gets hurt in a game, a Vandy graduate will be there to get him back on the field.
Fact is, if Vanderbilt put just half the effort UT puts into their football program, which is so ridiculous that they raised kid's tuition just to pay a damn football coach, then they would be just as good as UT.
Like i said earlier, I expected these kind of responses from UT fans when I wrote this. It just like a couple years ago when Vandy beat UT in Knoxville and every classless player except for a few refused to shake the Vandy players' hands.
UT= No class
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