November 29th – at Vanderbilt
Daniel: Vanderbilt lost a ton – perhaps most notably coach James Franklin, who seemed to have a special passion for beating Tennessee. The early returns haven’t been encouraging for Vandy in the Derek Mason era, as Temple came to Nashville and rolled the Commodores 37-7 in the season opener on Thursday. Still, the Vols are riding a two-game losing streak to the Commodores and have only won one true road game in the past three seasons. That being said, I think UT turns a couple of those trends around in this one, especially if a bowl berth is on the line. Either way, UT gets the W in Nashville. Winner: Tennessee Season: 5-7
Houston: As good as the last three seasons have been at Vanderbilt, 2014 has all the makings of a nightmarish season in Nashville. Vandy’s season opener featured seven Commodore turnovers, a rotating door at quarterback and zero offensive points scored against a Temple team that went 2-10 in 2013. Vanderbilt lacks depth and talent at necessary positions and the little fan support that James Franklin was able to muster during his time there will quickly fade into frustration and apathy. Tennessee will enter this game on a two-year losing streak to Vandy and the seniors and in-state players will all be looking to send a message. The stands surrounding Dudley field will be colored orange and the Vols will take out two years of frustrations during a dismantling of the Commodores. Winner: Vols (BIG) Season: 7-5
Reed: Vanderbilt may not win an SEC game this year and James Franklin got out of town at just the right time. During his three years in Nashville a commendable eight different players earned spots on an AP All-SEC team; yet Franklin didn’t recruit a single one of them. Mason inherited an empty cupboard and has a long road ahead of him. The Vols will demolish Vandy in this one and wrap up a postseason berth in the same city where they last played a postseason game. Jones’ youthful Vols will have found their stride by season’s end and will win their postseason game to get to seven wins for the first time since 2009. Winner: Tennessee Season: 7-6 with a bowl victory
