The Vols have gotten off to a brutal start for the 2019 season. Georgia has looked every bit the part of a top-five football team to begin this year. Those two teams will meet on Saturday, and it’s no surprise that the Bulldogs are major road favorites for the nighttime showdown in Knoxville.
Tennessee (1-3, 0-1 SEC) has opened up as three-touchdown underdogs to No. 3 Georgia (4-0, 1-0 SEC). According to Vegas Insider, an online sports betting site, the Bulldogs are favored by 22 points for this Saturday’s contest. The Vols and Dawgs will kick-off at 7:00 PM in Neyland Stadium on Saturday, October 5th.
Last year, Georgia was a 30.5-point favorite when the Vols traveled down to Athens, but Tennessee managed to play it closer than Vegas anticipated, losing by 26 points, 38-12.
The 22-point spread would be the largest home underdog the Vols have been to Georgia since at least 1995. According to the Odds Shark historical database, Tennessee has been a home underdog to the Bulldogs five other times, but the largest spread to date was back in 2013 when Georgia was a 13.5-point favorite coming into Knoxville. Tennessee took the Bulldogs to the brink in that game, losing 34-31 in overtime.
Both Tennessee and Georgia are coming off bye weeks this past week, so both teams have had an extra week to rest up and prepare for Saturday’s contest.
While the Vols have started the season 1-3 with losses to Georgia State, BYU, and a blowout loss on the road to Florida, Georgia has looked elite with dominating victories over Vanderbilt, Murray State, and Arkansas State then following those wins up with a 23-17 victory at home against No. 9 Notre Dame before their bye week.
The all-time series between Tennessee and Georgia is in a dead heat right now. The series is tied 23-23-2, though the Dawgs have dominated as of late. Georgia has won the last two games by a combined score of 79-12, including a 41-0 win the last time the two teams played in Neyland Stadium. That loss is the Vols’ worst loss in Neyland Stadium history.
Georgia has not only won the last two contests between the two programs, but they’ve emerged victorious in seven of the last nine games between the two schools. Dating back to 2000, the Bulldogs have gone 13-6 against Tennessee.
Overall, Tennessee is 13-9-1 against the spread against Georgia dating back to 1995. The Vols have gone 5-2 against the spread when facing the Bulldogs over their last seven meetings.
