Tennessee football returns to Neyland Stadium this Saturday night as they prepare to host Mississippi State in its penultimate home game of the 2024 season. The Vols came in at No. 7 in the first CFP poll earlier this week and are looking to keep improving their playoff hopes as November moves forward.
Each week, the RTI team will provide game predictions for Tennessee’s matchup.
We move on to the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
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Ric Butler
The big question for me for this game is can Tennessee finish drives? This is certainly an opportunistic situation for them to do so. The Vols’ offense struggled with first-half production in SEC play but has been hurt by special teams mishaps and turnovers at the same time. With Mississippi State presenting one of, if not the worst defense in the conference, Tennessee has every chance to go out there and make a statement. More importantly, though, create some momentum and confidence heading into next weekend’s crucial Georgia game.
On the other side of the ball, I want to see if Tennessee’s defense can continue to win the red zone. Man, Tennessee’s defense has been hard for opposing teams to crack once the field shrinks down to the final 20 yards. The Vols present a relentless front seven that can pressure the quarterback and can shut down a chunk of the field with cornerback Jermod McCoy. Mississippi State has an offense with quarterback Michael Van Buren, though. It may even be a bit shocking to see the discrepancy between the Bulldogs’ offense and defense. But with State bringing in a fair offense to Neyland Stadium on Saturday night, I expect there to be more opportunities for Tennessee’s defense to stand tall in the red zone.
This game is huge for Tennessee. Not necessarily Mississippi State as an opponent, but the final tune-up game before what could be a season-altering game at Georgia next weekend. As a bold prediction, I’ll say that Tennessee’s defense continues its streak of not allowing opposing offenses to 20 or more points despite the Bulldogs averaging 29.1 points per game.
Prediction: Tennessee 38, Mississippi State 17
Jack Foster
Mississippi State is a different kind of opponent than Tennessee’s primarily faced this year. Kentucky and Oklahoma, specifically, have had rough years offensively while playing sound defensively. Florida is along that line as well, but the Gators posed more of a threat to Tennessee’s defense than the other two.
Mississippi State is the polar opposite of Kentucky and Oklahoma. The Bulldogs can score but cannot stop anybody. And by anybody, I mean anybody. Whether it’s Arkansas scoring 58, Toledo hanging 40+ in Starkville or even a horrible UMass team finding a way to score 20 points, Mississippi State’s defense has been by far the worst in the SEC.
This is the game we’ve circled all year as the moment Nico Iamaleava and the Tennessee wide receivers can have a breakout game. I like the momentum Tennessee’s offense has built in the last game-and-a-half, specifically Iamaleava. The Vols squandered many opportunities last week and the receivers didn’t play well, but Iamaleava had his best game as a Vol after a great second half versus Alabama.
If Iamaleava continues to build off of that, the wide receivers play well, Dylan Sampson does Dylan Sampson things and there are few to no turnovers or missed kicks, Tennessee will not only score 30 for the first time in SEC play, but 40.
How much will Mississippi State score? Depends on how the game goes. If the Vols’ offense struggles and its tight, Tennessee’s defense will prevent Mississippi State from putting together multiple touchdown drives. But I expect a comfortable, wire-to-wire lead for Tennessee, allowing Mississippi State to become the first SEC team to score 20 against Tennessee and likely backdoor cover the spread.
Prediction: Tennessee 45, Mississippi State 24
Ryan Schumpert
Tennessee has been fantastic at home under Josh Heupel and that’s continued this season with the Vols riding a three-game winning streak into Saturday night’s matchup against Mississippi State at Neyland Stadium. It’s the Vols final tuneup before heading on the road to face No. 3 Georgia in what’s the hardest game on their whole schedule.
It’s obvious enough that the Mississippi State game is a must win game for Tennessee but the Vols also need to eradicate their first half offensive issues to have meaningful confidence and self belief heading to Athens. The last two weeks, Tennessee has moved the ball up-and-down the field in the first half but hasn’t been able to fully capitalize. The Vols should once again be able to move the football because Mississippi State’s defense ranks near the bottom of the SEC in nearly every meaningful statistic. Tennessee should score a lot of points in this game and they should score them in the first half. Bonus points of confidence if Tennessee can score on some pass plays, particularly inside the red zone.
Despite its poor record, Mississippi State’s offense is actually one of the best ones the Vols will face this season. Freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. has been really solid since replacing the injured Blake Shapen while receiver Kevin Coleman is one of the best in the SEC. Some of the stats are a bit inflated because Mississippi State is throwing all the time while behind, but led by a Van Buren boy this Bulldogs offense can score and if Tennessee comes out flat on offense then they will need another comeback.
Maybe I’ll look stupid in hindsight but I think this is the game when Tennessee’s offense puts stuff together and its defense finally gives up 20 points before of the high possession, larger lead nature of the game.
Tennessee 42, Mississippi State 21
