Bristol Motor Speedway - Bristol, TN
Kickoff: Saturday, 8:00 p.m. ET
Line: Tennessee -11.5, Total: 54.5

#17 Tennessee will be hoping that its Saturday meeting with Virginia Tech goes a lot smoother than its 20-13 overtime victory over Appalachian State last week.

Virginia Tech’s first game under Justin Fuente resulted in a victory, but the team didn’t quite live up to expectations in the opener. The Hokies came away with a 36-13 victory in the game, but they were 31.5-point favorites. One area where Virginia Tech is going to need to be better on Saturday is in the turnover department. The Hokies coughed the ball up four times last week and that is not going to cut it against an SEC team. The Volunteers, however, did not look like an SEC team in last week’s 20-13 OT win over Appalachian State. Tennessee was the recipient of a ton of hype coming into the season, but putting up 317 total yards against an FCS team was less than inspiring. The Volunteers will be hoping to put that behind them with a blowout victory this weekend. The last meeting between these two programs came in 2009 and Virginia Tech won that game 37-14 as a five-point road ‘dog. The teams have, however, split victories both SU and ATS since 1992. One thing that favors the Volunteers is the fact that they are 3-0 ATS in neutral site games under Butch Jones. The Hokies, meanwhile, are 61-38 ATS after playing a non-conference game since 1992 and are not going to just back down in this one.

Virginia Tech’s offensive line was supposed to be excellent this season and it did not disappoint in the opener. Behind an experienced group of blockers, the Hokies rushed for 206 yards and QB Jerod Evans was able to make most of his throws with room to breathe in the pocket. Evans was 20-for-32 with 221 yards, four touchdowns and no picks in the game. He also led the team in rushing with 46 yards on five carries. Evans should be in for a big season, as Justin Fuente has been able to get a lot out of his quarterbacks in recent stops. WR Isaiah Ford also happens to be a target that makes things easier on the guy under center. Ford had 11 catches for 117 yards and a touchdown in the opener and should be able to make some plays against a Tennessee defense that looked very vulnerable at times last week. On the defensive end, expect MLB Andrew Motuapuaka and DB Greg Stroman to make plays in this game. Motuapuaka is a guy that flies around the field and seems to always be helping bring down the ball carrier. He had seven tackles in the opener for Virginia Tech and will need to be on his game Saturday. Stroman, meanwhile, had two picks against Liberty and will need to make life difficult for the Tennessee receivers on Saturday.

Tennessee barely avoided what would have been an embarrassing loss against Appalachian State last week and the team knows that it must come out with more intensity this weekend. QB Joshua Dobbs is a guy that will need to be a lot better against Virginia Tech in this one. Dobbs was just 16-for-29 with 191 yards, one touchdown and one pick last week, and he should have been able to dominate against an FCS school like that one. It’s important that he does not force throws in this game, and he’d be wise to use his legs more as well. Another guy that must be better is RB Jalen Hurd. Hurd rushed for 110 yards and a touchdown against Appalachian State, but it took him 28 carries to get those numbers. Hurd rushed for 4.7 yards per carry in 2015, so it’s important that he gets closer to that number with a big game against the Hokies. Defensively, the Volunteers weren’t that bad in the season opener. They allowed just 292 yards of total offense in that game, but it’s going to tougher to stop a quarterback like Evans. With his ability to run, the Tennessee secondary must stay locked in or the Hokies will burn the Volunteers on broken plays.