For one last time before the SEC expands to a division-less 16-team conference, Tennessee and Josh Heupel will run the race in the SEC East this coming fall in Heupel’s third year leading the Vols.
Tennessee will face a number of challenges this season including road games at Alabama, Kentucky, and Florida alongside revenge games facing Georgia and South Carolina in Knoxville.
But with all of the talk of the SEC teams on the schedule, one lesser-known team could provide Tennessee with a sneaky challenge early in the season.
Tennessee will host UT-San Antonio during week four in Knoxville on Saturday, Sept. 23. While the Roadrunners will certainly be an underdog against the Vols, UTSA has put together a string of quality seasons. The Roadrunners posted a 12-2 record in 2021 and an 11-3 record in 2022, finishing ranked in the Top 25 in the most recent season.
“Which Power 5 teams could get tripped up at home by a Group of 5 team, a la Appalachian State winning at Texas A&M last season? One game to watch is UTSA at Tennessee on Sept. 23,” ESPN’s Chris Low wrote about the game on Monday. “The Vols have an away game with Florida the week before and a home date the week after with South Carolina, which torched Tennessee 63-38 a year ago and ruined the Vols’ playoff chances. UTSA brings back 15 starters, including record-setting quarterback Frank Harris, after going 11-3 and winning two straight Conference USA titles.”
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As Low mentioned, the Roadrunners return star quarterback Frank Harris. For some context into Harris’s success, UTSA was 10-0 in 2022 when Harris hit more than 65 percent of his passes. In 2021, UTSA went 10-0 when Harris completed just 58 percent of his passes.
Familiarity is a strength for the UTSA offense, too. The Roadrunners return 10 of their offensive starters including wide receiver Joshua Cephus, who nearly caught 1,000 yards for UTSA last season. UTSA averaged 36.8 points per game in 2022 which was good for No. 14 in the country.
This is a game that Tennessee has every ability to win despite the Roadrunners’ high-powered offense. UTSA’s three losses last season came during their three ranked games against No. 24 Houston, No. 21 Texas, and No. 23 Troy in the Cure Bowl. So while the Roadrunners are a very solid football team, they did struggle jumping up and facing ranked competition last season.
This is not a game for Tennessee to take lightly, particularly with the fact of Florida before and South Carolina after. In fact, the Roadrunners could even provide Tennessee with more of a challenge than an SEC team or two will.
But while it might not be the dominant blowout that some Group of 5 games have presented in the past, Tennessee should be able to find the victory under good preparation and a focused mindset. Nonetheless, though, the Roadrunners could provide a sneaky tough and competitive game in Knoxville this September.
The Volunteers will officially begin fall camp this week en route to the season opener on Sept. 2 against Virginia in Nashville’s Nissan Stadium.
