After reviewing the film, Kirk Herbstreit has apparently come away very impressed with Tennessee’s team at the midway point of the season. So much so, that the ESPN College GameDay host believes the Vols could give the No. 1 team in the nation a game this weekend in Neyland Stadium.

During the latest episode of the Herbstreit & Fitzsimmons ESPN college football podcast, the ESPN college football analyst was asked to share his thoughts on the upcoming game between the two SEC rivals.

For any Alabama fans worried about Tua Tagovailoa’s knee, Herbstreit also has an encouraging update regarding the quarterback’s status here.

“Keep in mind, I’ll say this, I talked to people at ‘Bama, I think Tua’s fine with the knee. There’s been a lot made of that this week, we’ll keep an eye on that because Tua takes them to a whole different level,” Herbstreit said. “Jalen Hurts is very good, but with Tua, all bets are off.

“With that in mind, Tennessee just went to Jordan-Hare, knocked off Auburn. You can say Auburn is down. Tennessee, to go to Jordan-Hare, that’s a huge win and their quarterback, Jarrett Guarantano, made some big plays in the second half. He has some weapons in Jauan Jennings on the outside, the (Marquez) Callaway kid, Ty Chandler running the ball. It’s a rivalry game, got nothing to lose, a coach in Jeremy Pruitt that knows Nick Saban very well, knows his players very, very well. ‘Bama is going to win the game but it wouldn’t shock me at all if this is Alabama’s toughest test to this point.”

That’s a somewhat bold statement for a Tennessee team many were predicting to go 0-8 in the SEC this time last week but the Vols have quietly improved each week this season under Jeremy Pruitt. Outside of the rough opener against West Virginia and the six-turnover meltdown against Florida, Tennessee has played consistently week in and week out.

If the Vols can put together another complete game, don’t be surprised if Pruitt’s group does challenge a banged up Alabama team that will be playing its eighth consecutive game before heading into its bye following this game.