Tennessee Volunteers @ Kentucky Wildcats: Game Prediction

Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

The final game of the regular season for the Vols is a road trip to Lexington to take on the Kentucky Wildcats. Last season, interim head coach Jim Chaney led UT to their only conference victory of the season, as they defeated Kentucky 37-17 in Knoxville.

The victory came on the heels of former head coach Derek Dooley’s firing.  This season, Tennessee and Kentucky have new coaches that their respective fan-bases are excited about.

Kentucky hired head coach Mark Stoops to lead the program out of the SEC basement.

Last season, the Wildcats finished 2-10 and 0-8 in the SEC. While this season might not be much better, there is reason for their fans be hopeful.

Stoops has put together a very solid recruiting class for 2014 so far and he plans on opening up the offense. QB’s Maxwell Smith and Jalen Whitlow are competing for the starting job, while the defense is anchored by potential All-SEC performers in DE Alvin Dupree and LB Avery Williamson.

The Vols are looking at a potential 7-5 season with a win over Kentucky, so this is a big matchup in terms of determining what bowl Tennessee could be playing in.

A 7-5 record would be a successful season in Coach Butch Jones’ first campaign in Knoxville. A road victory in the SEC is never easy, so this one could end up being close.

With the victory, UT moves to 7-5 and secures a winning season for the first time in three years.