Oklahoma gets their first taste of life in the SEC when they host Tennessee on Saturday night for what will be just the fifth overall meeting between the two schools. The No. 6 Vols are 7-point favorites on the road over the No. 15 Sooners at the time of this writing. The total opened at 59.5 but money coming in on the under has pushed this line down to 57.5.
The Sooners' biggest strength is their defense, which ranks 22nd in the nation, allowing just 77 rushing yards per game. Their passing defense however isn’t quite as good, giving up 187 yards per game and 11.0 yards per completion. That’s going to be a massive problem against the Tennessee offense that leads the country in scoring, averaging 63.7 points per game.
The Vols have put up impressive numbers over their first three games, scoring 69 against Chattanooga, 51 against NC State and 71 against Kent State. Sure, these teams aren’t quite as good as Oklahoma but even against an SEC opponent, this offense is going to have success.
Quarterback Nico Iamaleava has been impressive to say the least. Through three games, he’s completed 71% of his passes, throwing for 698 yards, six touchdowns and only two interceptions. Keep in mind, he sat in the second half against Chattanooga and Kent State because the Vols were up by so much.
Tennessee also has Dylan Sampson to utilize in the run game. He’s rushed for 357 yards this season, which ranks 9th in the country. Fellow running back DeSean Bishop has also been dominant with 22 carries for 222 yards and three touchdowns, despite being a true freshman.
This game is also extremely personal for head coach Josh Heupel who played quarterback at Oklahoma, leading them to a National Championship in 2000. He later returned as the Sooners offensive coordinator before being fired by Bob Stoops in 2015. Stoops claimed that Heupel wasn’t the scapegoat for the team's struggles that year, but it caused tension between the two parties. Because of that, I’d imagine Heupel would love nothing more than to run up the score if the opportunity presents itself.
Oklahoma won’t be able to contain Tennessee's offense, which is why my favorite play in this game is the Vols’ team total over 33.5 points.
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