No. 21 Tennessee picked up its seventh consecutive win last week and will be looking to extend that streak against Missouri on Saturday afternoon at Neyland Stadium.
The Vols have now covered the spread at a 6-2-1 clip in their last nine games. They are a double-digit favorite at the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas.
“We opened Tennessee at -11 and now we have it at -12,” Westgate risk manager Edgar Federico told RTI. “We haven’t taken any sharp action on Tennessee. No big bets either. We just moved with the market. Basically, maybe another book took a big bet or a sharp bet, so we just moved with the market.”
The game has not received much betting interest thus far. Some betting markets opened the total at 45.5 points, but Westgate has it a few points higher.
“Not that much interest on the total either. We have it at 48.5,” Federico said. “Maybe one bet on that, nothing there.”
Missouri failed to cover the spread in each of its last seven games to close the 2019 season. The Tigers were able to grab a few late scores in their loss to Alabama in Week 1, covering the 28.5-point spread in a 38-19 loss.
Most of the small early betting action has been on Missouri at the SuperBook. The public liked what it saw from the Tigers against the Crimson Tide.
“Something that’s interesting is that the line moved against Tennessee, but the liability is on Missouri actually with straight bets and parlays,” Federico said. “The public is throwing Missouri in the parlays at +11 and +12. Same with the straight bets.”
Tennessee received news that Cade Mays had become eligible for this game on Wednesday night. The betting line subsequently moved from 11.5 to 12 in favor of the Vols.
Both Tennessee and Missouri went ‘over’ the total in Week 1. It snapped a five-game ‘under’ streak for the Vols and a six-game ‘under’ streak for the Tigers.
Missouri has won and covered in five of its eight games against Tennessee in the overall series. The Vols sprung a 24-20 upset as a 2.5-point road underdog last November, with the game going ‘under’ the listed total of 47.5.
The Tigers have struggled on the road, covering in one of their last five road games. Tennessee is 4-1 ATS in its last five October contests, but is 4-11-1 ATS in its last 16 games as a favorite.
The Vols have been nearly unbeatable as a double-digit favorite at Neyland Stadium, going 29-1 in their last 30 games. They have only covered the spread in 13 of those games, however. The lone straight-up loss was the season-opening fiasco against Georgia State last year.
Saturday’s game is set to begin at noon ET at Neyland Stadium.
