Tennessee at Texas A&M – Preview and Prediction
TEXAS A&M 7 TENNESSEE (56)
Implied Projected Score: Texas A&M 31.5 Tennessee 24.5
MEGALOCKS LINE – Texas A&M -4
The Game
How great is this ? The Volunteers and Aggies are a combined a 10-0 so far this season and they will square off in College Station on Saturday. The Volunteers are coming of a couple of big emotional wins (Florida, Georgia) while the Aggies just might be the best team in college football that nobody is talking about. In five games, the Aggies have wins over UCLA (OT), Auburn and Arkansas.
The Match-Up
Texas A&M offense vs Tennessee defense
The Aggies have been rolling with a really good running game. In 2015, the Aggies averaged 169 yards per game on the ground, while in 2016 so far, they are producing over 258 yards per contest. RB Treyveon Williams has been devastating with almost 500 yards rushing through five games at 9.0 yards per carry (!). QB Trevor Knight has slithered and scooted his way to 392 yards rushing. Knight has some really nice weapons in the passing game but is only completing 54% of his passes. The key to this game might be the ability of Knight to MATRICULATE in the passing game as the Volunteers have been less than stellar vs the pass (8 TD vs 3 INT).
Tennessee offense vs Texas A&M defense
The Volunteers appear to be the team of destiny. We are not talking about the “Destiny” that works the night shift at the local peelers, but the kind of destiny that helps a team do magical things during the course of a season. Tennessee has managed to score 20+ points in every game this season and have disposed of good teams like Virginia Tech, Florida and Georgia. We would even put Appalachian St in that category. They are only ranked #88 in the FBS in offense but QB Joshua Dobbs has managed to throw 13 TD passes while being a yuuuuge threat on the ground. MEGALOCKS SEC INSIDERS tell us that RB Jalen Hurd should be good to go although there is some concern about his health. In any event, the Vols are going to have trouble moving the ball consistently against a defense that has been good against the run and the pass (3 TD passes allowed).
MEGA-MAZEMENT !
Texas A&M and Tennessee have only met twice before with the Vols winning both games….the 1957 Gator Bowl was certainly a game most people will never forget….Texas A&M is 8-1-1 L10 to the under….This is the Aggies first true home game since September (!) 10th.
Summary
This is one of those games where we see a lot of perceived value on the underdog but cannot play them due to the situation. Tennessee is coming off two emotional games and now goes on the road to face an SEC team outside of their division. They are really good but it would be a lot to ask to win this game. Not sure about the cover.
Conclusion
Official play: None.
Lean: Tennessee team total under any number 24 or better.