The Appalachian State Mountaneers waltz into Neyland Stadium to settle their differences with the #9 Tennessee Volunteers. The contest will take place on Thursday, September 1st at 7:30 p.m. ET on the SEC Network. Odds makers have the Volunteers a -20 point favorite and the over/under set at 60.5. It’s a contrast in styles, when the two teams that are separated by 160 miles clash in front of 90,000 fans.
Appalachian State:
Scott Satterfield hopes to repeat the performance of the Appalachian team that upset Michigan in Ann Arbor nine years ago. The Mountaineers are 0-5 against Power Five programs since that amazing upset victory. All is not lost as Appalachian State returns a ton of talent that went 11-2 in the Sun Belt Conference in 2015. The Mountaineers have gone 17-2 the last two seasons and return 17 starters from last year’s team.
The Mountaineers are all about the run and returning running back Marcus Cox fits that roll to a tee. The work-horse has produced three straight 1,000 yard campaigns and ran for nine touchdowns. Jalin Moore is no slouch either. Moore compiled 731 more yards to the two back tandem. Duel threat quarterback Taylor Lamb contributed another 436 yards and five scores.
The senior starter also knows a little something about putting up points via the pass. The talented gunslinger threw for 31 touchdowns in route to a Camellia Bowl win over Ohio to cap of last seasons finale. Unfortunately, most of the production from the wide-out spot is gone. With all the loses, this year might be a little tougher road to hoe.
The Mountaineers defense was the best group in the Sun Belt Conference in 2015. The rugged bunch surrendered only 19.1 points a game which placed them at 14th in the country. In all fairness, the Appalachian State defense needs to be judged on a curve.
Lets no forget that they were taken behind the woodshed versus the Clemson Tigers last year. The Mountaineers managed to give up over forty points to a mediocre Troy offense in conference play. Sun Belt offenses are one thing, SEC Power Five’s can be a whole other animal.
Tennessee:
All the preseason jibberish is behind us. It’s Tennessee’s job to prove to the college football world that they are worth all of the hype. Butch Davis has plenty of firepower to keep the Volunteers rolling in 2015, but first they need to get passed the scrappy Mountaineers.
Another duel-threat quarterback will be on the field on Thursday night. Joshua Dobbs is back and hopes to improve on his sub-par 59.1 percent completion average. He only threw four 15 touchdowns but he pitched in 11 more with his feet.
The signal-caller will have three juniors to play catch with this season. Receivers Josh Malone and Josh Smith contributed just over 400 yards and two touchdowns last year. Tight End Ethan Wolfe pitched in over 200 more. Not the best statistics to write home to mom about. Head coach Butch Davis insists that they’re still a work in progress.
As far as the running game is concerned, Tennessee is absolutely loaded in the backfield. Starting running back Jalen Hurd returns along with his 1,288 yards and 12 touchdowns. Complimenting Hurd is junior running back Alvin Kamara. Kamara scampered for nearly 700 yards with seven trips to pay dirt. Both grinders can catch the ball too. They combined for 55 catches for almost 500 yards and five scores.
The Volunteers may have the best defensive line rotation in the country. That should bode well against a team that is as run happy as the Mountaineers. How coach Butch Davis decides to shuffle all the talent in and out to keep them fresh still remains to be seen.
Senior linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin led the team with 105 tackles and had six sacks last year. He is healthy and expected to be hawking all over the Appalachian State runners. Finally, the Volunteers pack quite a punch in their secondary. Defensive back Evan Berry was the nations number one kick-off returner (38.3) and his partner in crime Cam Sutton, led the country in punt return average (18.7).
Match-Up Analysis:
There is one big question on everybody’s minds for this in-state match-up. Can an impressive Sun Belt Conference team come into a SEC powerhouse’s venue and make it interesting. Well folks, were about to find out.
Appalachian State likes to run the ball but they were more balanced than people thought in 2015. The receiving corps is thin in 2016, so they will need to run even more to move the chains versus Tennessee. Unfortunately, that plays right into the Volunteer’s teeth. The talented group from Knoxville should be too much for the Mountaineers on Thursday. Appalachian State may get their 10 win season anyway, but I don’t see it starting here.
The Volunteers return very talented backs that are capable of shredding the Mountaineers under-rated front. Appalachian State returns nine defensive starters from last years impressive unit, but that isn’t enough to keep Tennessee from scoring 30 plus points. Throw in a huge advantage in special teams and it’s a recipe for points-a-plenty. Mark me down for the over 60.5.
The Hun’s Prediction:
The Over 60.5
