Tennessee vs. Alabama: Prediction and preview

Tennessee and Alabama will duke it out in Neyland Stadium on the Third Saturday of October, but this time it’s likely to be a little more competitive. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. Eastern time on CBS.

Tennessee vs. Alabama preview

For the first time in a long time, the Third Saturday in October will be competitive again.

The No. 6 Vols host Alabama looking to exorcise 15 years’ worth of demons in front of College GameDay, a packed stadium and the rest of the nation. Alabama, meanwhile, looks to add its best win of the season and solidify itself as the team it knows it can be – No. 1 with no close second.

Injuries, or perhaps inactives, will play a huge part in this one. On Tennessee’s side, there’s Cedric Tillman, who some sources say will miss the game. Sources can be wrong though, and Tillman would provide a major boost to an already potent offense.

Most books have Tennessee an underdog by at least 7 points against Alabama this week. Barstool’s risk-free $1,000 bet is a great way to dip your toes into betting the Vols for the first time. New users get your first bet refunded, up to $1,000, if you lose the bet. Barstool Sportsbook is live in Tennessee. Click here to get started.

For Alabama, the storyline of the week is whether or not Bryce Young will play. If he does, Tennessee’s secondary could prove a problem for the Vols. If Jalen Milroe is to play, those concerns could be mitigated – Young is by far the bigger vertical threat, of course.

But let’s not speculate. Nobody on the outside knows if Young will play until the Tide take the field on offense.

What we do know is this: This is Tennessee’s best offense in the past 20 years and maybe even further back than that. The Vols have the No. 1 offense in the country in yards per game and are carving up good defenses left and right. Hendon Hooker is a legitimate Heisman candidate that could make even the best secondary’s look silly. Best of luck covering Jalin Hyatt, Bru McCoy, Ramel Keyton and potentially Tillman all at once.

Alabama’s offense is stout too. It’s also a step up in competition for a Tennessee defense that has played well, but still has obvious flaws. Jahmyr Gibbs will test Tennessee’s strong defensive line playing well under Rodney Garner, but a talented set of receivers such as Jermaine Burton and Kobe Prentice will test the limits of Tennessee’s makeshift secondary, too. Ultimately, the defensive side of the ball will be where this game is won or lost.

One thing is clear – Saturday is sure to deliver.

Tennessee vs. Alabama prediction

It all comes down to whether or not Bryce Young plays.

It seems likely that if Young can go, he’ll give it everything he’s got to play against the Volunteers. Sure, some will say a loss doesn’t mean Alabama’s season is over, but that’s not how Saban plays things.

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Saban said Young has been practicing this week and wants to play, so we will assume he is playing.

In that case, Alabama’s vertical offense is just too much of a hill for Tennessee’s secondary to climb. Tennessee is down 2 starting cornerbacks from 2 weeks ago and has yet to play a QB of Young’s caliber. It’ll be close, but if Young plays Alabama can extend this streak to 16.

Prediction: Alabama 35, Tennessee 31