Mississippi State (2-7, 0-5 Southeastern Conference) at No. 7 Tennessee (7-1, 4-1, No. 7 CFP ), Saturday, 7 p.m. EST (ESPN).
BetMGM College Football Odds: Tennessee by 23 1/2.
Series record: Tennessee leads 28-16-1.
What’s at stake?
The seventh-ranked Tennessee Volunteers need to solve their first-half offensive woes. They were shut out by Arkansas, Florida and Alabama. Then they scored just three points against Kentucky before halftime. The Mississippi State Bulldogs have just snapped a seven-game skid. Now they want to start a winning streak by taking that winning feeling to the next level with their first this season inside the SEC. They’ve played Georgia and Texas A&M tough only to lose by 10 to each.
Key matchup
Mississippi State can score, averaging 29.1 points a game. The Bulldogs haven’t been able to clamp down on defense, giving up 34.6 points a game. How well Mississippi State plays on defense will be key against a Tennessee offense looking to score early and often. Alabama’s Jalen Milroe is the only quarterback to start and finish a game against Tennessee’s defense this season with QB Michael Van Buren next to try.
Players to watch
Mississippi State: RBs Davon Booth and Johnnie Daniels: Booth and Daniels provide the bulk of the work for a running game that averages 143.3 yards. They will have to be effective to give Van Buren a chance to open up a pass game averaging 255.2 yards a game.
Tennessee: QB Nico Iamaleava: The redshirt freshman took a major step forward in his improvement against Kentucky. He was calm and confident while completing 28 of 38 passes for 292 yards and a TD even with at least two would-be TDs dropped by his receivers. Iamaleava had shown brief lapses of panic in the pocket when he didn’t appear comfortable. He has to continue that growth with a trip to No. 2 Georgia up next.
Facts & figures
Dating to last year’s Citrus Bowl win over Iowa, Tennessee has held nine straight opponents under 20 points. … The Vols rank in the Top 10 nationally in 12 categories. … The Vols also have allowed the second-fewest offensive TDs this season, tied with Ohio State at 10. … Tennessee RB Dylan Sampson has a school-record 19 rushing TDs this season. That leads the SEC and is second nationally in the Football Bowl Subdivision. … Mississippi State has scored eight TDs of 30-plus yards this season. Tennessee has allowed five plays of 30 yards or longer this season.
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