Week 2 of college football’s regular season will bring a hotly-contested matchup when the No. 19 Oklahoma Sooners visit the No. 25 Tennessee Volunteers this coming Saturday. Both the Sooners and the Volunteers are fresh off solid (and expected) opening day wins, but they are now about to face one another in an early clash between two of the nation’s top programs.
Who will prevail between these two teams that are currently basking in their respective Top 25 glows? Read on as we analyze their pivotal matchup below. For more NCAA Football coverage this coming weekend, head on over to our previews for Oregon vs. Michigan St. and Notre Dame vs. Virginia.
[sc:NCAAFArticles ]Oklahoma Sooners vs. Tennessee Volunteers Preview
Where: Neyland Stadium, Knoxville
When: Saturday, September 12, 6:00 PM ET
Line: Oklahoma Sooners at Tennessee Volunteers – view all NCAA Football lines
Betting on the Oklahoma Sooners
New offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley’s Air Raid offense worked like a charm for the No. 19 Oklahoma Sooners. The boys from Norman made quick work of the Akron Zips with a 41-3 beatdown this past Saturday. The Sooners racked up 539 total yards – the second-best offensive performance in the nation in Week 1 of the regular season.
[sc:NCAA240banner ]Quarterback Baker Mayfield proved that he certainly deserved the starting job that he won over Trevor Knight, throwing for 388 yards to go with three touchdowns against the hapless Zips. The junior QB even broke Sam Bradford’s season-opener record of 363 passing yards that was set back in 2007. And with such a dominant outing this past weekend, Mayfield’s odds of winning the Heisman Trophy suddenly improved to +3,000.
Another beneficiary of Oklahoma’s new-look offense is running back Joe Mixon. Mixon, who sat out all of 2014 due to a suspension from an off-field incident, made three catches for a whopping 115 yards, including a spectacular 76-yard touchdown reception. And with the way the aerial assault was working out for the Sooners, his services on the ground were hardly needed (five carries for just 27 rushing yards).
Even the defense was locked-in on Saturday, allowing Akron just 226 yards of offense and a solitary field goal. Furthermore, the team completely shut down Akron’s starting quarterback Tra’Von Chapman, who failed to connect on all of his eight passes this past Saturday. The Zips finished the game with a paltry 88 yards in the air against the Sooners.
Oklahoma’s D will get a much stiffer challenge this weekend, though, as they take on the much more potent Tennessee offense.
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Betting on the Tennessee Volunteers
It wasn’t as pretty or awe-inspiring as we thought it would be, but the No. 25 Tennessee Volunteers finally notched their first win as a ranked team since the Outback Bowl in New Year’s Day of 2008 with a 59-30 win over the Bowling Green Falcons on Saturday.
The Vols trampled over the Falcons with such vigor and amassed six rushing touchdowns, thanks to a pair of 100-yard efforts from their sophomore backs. Jalen Hurd found the end zone three times in the first half and finished the game with 123 yards, while Alvin Kamara had 144 yards on the ground and two TDs in just 15 carries. The last time Tennessee had a pair of 100-yard rushers in a single game was back in 2009.
Let’s not forget that quarterback Joshua Dobbs had quite a game himself, too. The multi-faceted playmaker had 205 yards and a pair of scores through the air this past weekend, plus 89 rushing yards and the team’s other rushing touchdown.
Yet for all of the praises being showered towards the Vols’ offensive output, the team’s defense, on the other hand, falls under heavy scrutiny. Sure, three sacks and recovering a forced fumble on D is nice and all, but allowing Bowling Green to put up 557 yards of offense is not. Heck, the defense even made Falcons quarterback Matt Johnson (424 passing yards, two TDs) look like a starter from the NFL.
With the upcoming game against the Sooners being the first true home opener for the Vols (last weekend’s game against Bowling Green was played at LP Field – home of the Tennessee Titans), expect their D to be more amped up and focused with the entire Knoxville crowd behind them in Neyland. Well Tennessee’s defense better be ready indeed, as the Sooners have what looks to be one of the soundest two-way offenses in the nation judging from what we saw this past weekend.
Writer’s Prediction
Oklahoma exploits Tennessee’s leaky secondary with a gritty 38-31 win on the road.
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