Tennessee football fans could never give Kentucky the edge. However, the Wildcats could pose a large threat to the Volunteers in the race for the East.
This is bound to ruffle some feathers with Tennessee football fans. But that doesn’t matter. the game between the Vols and SEC East Rival Kentucky Wildcats is ranked as a “pick-em” by oddsmakers in Vegas. It’s an even bout for both teams.
SEC analyst Cole Cubelic made it very clear in a series of tweets who his pick for the East was. He has mentioned it’s a three-way race between Georgia, Florida and Kentucky.
Usually Tennessee football is a contender in that race but Cubelic actually made some decent points on why this year could be different.
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE SCHEDULE:
Consider Tennessee’s lineup for 2017. Some believe it’s more difficult than last year’s. Some do not. Regardless, you have to understand who they face from the SEC West.
Josh Ward and Mike Griffith of SECcountry.com discussed on their daily podcast the interesting (and in Tennessee’s case, harmful) schedule module that plays in the Wildcats’ favor.
Tennessee draws in Alabama and LSU from the SEC west. Kentucky, on the other hand, goes head to head with the Mississippi schools, Ole Miss and Mississippi St.
When you have Tennessee facing a Top 5 (Alabama) and Top 15 (LSU) team in the nation from the West, their chances suffer for the East title. Kentucky holds a much stronger opportunity to beat out their SEC west opponents since these opponents are no where near the “Alabama caliber”.
Is that fair? Not necessarily. Recent questions have been raised if the Vols should even have to face Bama every year. Of course, I’m in full agreement with former Vol Stephen White. “We shouldn’t have to, we should want to.”
That’s what makes the Tennessee football program tradition so rich. Every Vols fan in the world looks forward to the third Saturday in October. Unfortunately, if you consider points, Bama has indeed outscored Tennessee by 351-119 over the past 10 years. Ouch.
Bama has been dominant for a long time. So, when the Vols meet them each year but Kentucky doesn’t, of course UT’s running for the East depletes.
Kentucky silenced the crowd when they defeated the Louisville Cardinals 41-38 in a shocking upset at Papa John Cardinal Stadium. If they perform to that standard through the 2017 season, chances at the East are prime for the Wildcats.
REPS vs. POTENTIAL
If you’re going to go by potential, the victory belongs to the Vols. Consider all the 4 and 5 star players they’ll have spread across the field. But, Cubelic’s opinion is formulated solely off of game reps.
That’s fair. No one can argue it’s easier to go with proven talent than unproven. He mentions he thinks Kentucky is better in depth at the following positions: “RB, OL, TE, LB, S, CB & as of today QB.”
Think about this. Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky all went 4-4 for SEC play in 2016. There’s no great degree of separation between these teams.
However, Tennessee managed to walk away with a 13 point victory over the Wildcats last season. Why? How?
In my opinion, two of the biggest reasons Kentucky faltered against the Vols were QB Joshua Dobbs and RB Alvin Kamara. This duo was practically unstoppable for the Wildcats every year.
As we know, both have been drafted to the NFL and are no longer with UT. That could be a problem.
So as far as we know, Cubelic holds some very valid points. We can’t preach on what we don’t know, meaning this year’s Tennessee football team as a whole. What we do know is Kentucky can be underrated.
They proved that when they defeated Louisville for their last game of the season. They also proved it when Tennessee lost to a team Kentucky had already beaten, South Carolina.
College football is so up in the air and different from week to week. It’s crazy to believe we’re having this conversation in June before summer reps have even started.
We’ll have a much better idea of both of these teams come September. Still, it’s not silly to believe Kentucky will be a challenge for the Vols in 2017.