Tennessee Takes on Oregon in SEC Football
The Tennessee Volunteers can show if they are making strides back towards respectability when they travel out west to take on the number two ranked Oregon Ducks. Oregon’s Autzen Stadium is one of the toughest road venues in all of college football. If the Vols want to see if they are making any headway, this would be the team to measure themselves against.
Tennessee has looked really good in the first two games this season thus far. We know Austin Peay is not a good measuring stick. The Vanderbilt Commodores hammered the Governors last week as well. But the Vols put a pretty decent thumping on a tough Western Kentucky Hilltoppers team that was coming off a win over the SEC’s Kentucky Wildcats the week before. The Hilltoppers looked as if they were about to give the Vols a tough game until a six play stretch late in the first quarter when UT forced five turnovers in five possessions, each leading to a Tennessee touchdown. The Vols also picked off two WKU passes in the end zone for seven turnovers on the day in a 52-20 romp.
If UT’s defense can force the Ducks into some mistakes in their game on Saturday, things could be interesting. For the Vols, just to hang in there with the number two Ducks would be a victory of sorts. In 2010, the Ducks came to Knoxville and was also ranked #2. They won that game 48-13. Tennessee has been very mediocre since that game.
In that game, UT got out to a 13-3 lead early in the second quarter before the Ducks got it going. From that point on it was a 45-0 rout. So this game could be a big time blowout if the Ducks come out firing on all cylinders. Oddsmaker has the Volunteers +29 -110 and the Ducks -29 -110 ATS. Over/Under is 72.5 with both -110. We like Tennessee to beat the spread in this one. In fact, if there is a moneyline on this game by kickoff, we might even wager a small amount on UT. We also like the over -110.
Another interesting game involving the SEC this week is the Kentucky Wildcats hosting the Louisville Cardinals. Louisville is ranked number seven while Kentucky is 1-1 following their win over Miami of Ohio a week ago. Lately, the Cards have had their way in the rivalry, winning two straight years over their biggest rivals. Louisville has also won six of the last ten times. Oddsmaker has the Cardinals -14.5 -110 while the Wildcats are +14.5 -110. Over/Under is 60 with both -110. We like Teddy Bridgewater and the Cardinals to cover rather easily in this one. We also like the over -110.
One more big inter-conference match-up with an SEC team involved is the Ole Miss Rebels at the Texas Longhorns. Texas is in a bit of disarray these days and their longtime coach Mack Brown is starting to feel a bit warm on his backside. The rebels come into the game 2-0 after a big road win at Vanderbilt in week one. Texas is 1-1 after getting routed by the BYU Cougars a weeks ago. Oddsmaker has Ole Miss +3 -110 and Texas -3 -110 ATS. Moneyline has the Rebels +130 and the Horns -150. Over/Under is 68 with both -110. We like Ole Miss +130 and the under -110.
