Vols have upset on mind vs. Kentucky
Tennessee looks to play the spoiler when the Volunteers play host to No. 12 Kentucky on Saturday afternoon at Knoxville’s Neyland Stadium.
The Vols (4-5, 1-4 SEC) are coming off a 14-0 win over Charlotte and could be, with a lucky bounce here or there against South Carolina, 3-1 in their last four games — the lone loss coming to No. 1 Alabama.
But that’s not quite the reality on Rocky Top for a young Vols team that is experiencing its share of growing pains under first-year head coach Jeremy Pruitt.
On Saturday, they welcome a Kentucky program that is 7-2 overall, 5-2 in the SEC, because of depth and experience. That begins at the top with head coach Mark Stoops. Pruitt is quite familiar with the defensive acumen of Stoops, whom he replaced as defensive coordinator at Florida State in 2013.
“They’re going to be very well coached and hard-nosed,” Pruitt said of Stoops’ veteran squad.
“He does a fantastic job evaluating talent. They have a lot of experience. They start 15 seniors; you can see it on both sides of the ball. They’re tough, they’re physical, they can run the football offensively. They have a very athletic quarterback. It seems like some of these guys have been playing forever.”
Kentucky’s Cinderella-type season hit a road bump last week when the Wildcats fell to No. 5 Georgia 34-17 in a game that sealed a second straight SEC East title for the Bulldogs. Stoops’ program still has plenty to play for, including the program’s first 10-win season since 1977 — and third double-digit win campaign in school history.
Tennessee is looking for wins in consecutive contests for the first time since Weeks 2 and 3 against East Tennessee State and Texas-El Paso, respectively. The Vols need two victories in their final three games to claim bowl eligibility. Fortunately for Tennessee, they’ll close out the regular season in the Volunteer state with home tilts against the Wildcats and Missouri before heading to Nashville to face Vanderbilt.
“We’re going to play a really good football team this weekend,” Pruitt said. “We’ll have to be at our best and it will be a tremendous challenge for us.”