It’s win or go home for Tennessee and Vanderbilt on Saturday. And the Vols are trying to avoid losing to the Commodores for the third season in a row.
Tennessee (5-6, 2-5 SEC) and Vanderbilt (5-6, 2-5 SEC) face-off with bowl eligibility on the line on Saturday afternoon in the regular season finale for both teams. Whichever team wins will automatically qualify for a bowl game. The loser will have to hope that not enough teams around the country earn a 6-6 record and that their APR score will be high enough to get them in a bowl game.
The Vols are coming off one of their worst performances of the season in a 50-17 loss to Missouri last weekend. Vanderbilt, meanwhile, downed Ole Miss 36-29 in overtime at home last weekend. The Commodores have won two of their last three games, including a 45-31 win over Ole Miss and a close loss to Missouri.
Historically, Tennessee has owned the series against Vanderbilt, going 75-31-5 against the Commodores in their 111 previous meetings. But Vanderbilt has turned the tide in the annual in-state rivalry as of late, winning two straight games and four of the last six.
Vanderbilt hasn’t beaten the Vols in three straight contests since the 1920s. Tennessee will try to make sure that doesn’t happen.
The Commodores boast a powerful offense led by senior quarterback Kyle Shurmur and Illinois transfer Ke’Shawn Vaughn at running back. Shurmur has torched the Vols in the past, throwing for 908 yards, nine touchdowns, and two interceptions against UT in his career. Vaughn comes in on a hot streak, totaling nearly 500 yards on the ground in Vanderbilt’s last three games.
Tennessee should be able to find room to run against Vanderbilt’s defense, as the Commodores rank 13th in the SEC in rushing yards allowed per game. But their defense is tied for third in the SEC and ranks 23rd nationally in total takeaways, forcing 20 turnovers on the season.
If you can’t make it over to Nashville to see the Vols take on the Commodores, then we have all the information you need to watch or listen to the Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt game today.
Kickoff: 4:00 Eastern, November 24th, Vanderbilt Stadium (Nashville, TN)
TV: SEC Network (Dave Neal, D.J. Shockley, Dawn Davenport)
Streaming Online: WatchESPN.com or the ESPN app
Radio: Vol Network, Sirius 381, XM 381
Line: Vanderbilt (-3)
