Tennessee football: 5 reasons Vols will beat the Florida Gators

Tennessee football is an underdog against the Florida Gators Saturday. Here are five reasons the Volunteers will pull out the win.

Over the last 13 years, it’s become a given that Tennessee football loses to the Florida Gators. With the exception of one flawless half by Joshua Dobbs in 2016, a game in which Jim McElwain took his foot off the pedal, the Vols have invented ways to lose to this team.

The worst part of this losing fest to the Gators was obviously 2015, when the Vols blew a two-score fourth quarter lead for the second straight year. But 2017 was just as bad, losing on a Hail Mary. It just made things clear as crystal that Florida is meant to always get the best of Rocky Top.

But this year, both teams are 2-1 entering the game. It’s only the third time since the rivalry exploded in the 1990s that they are each coming in with a loss. The other two times were 2013 and 2014. Also, both teams are coming off four-win seasons last year, they both have new head coaches, and they’re playing this game to avoid being last place in the SEC East.

So there is a dramatically different feel for this game. Also, because of the end of the streak in 2016, Tennessee football doesn’t have to play with as sweaty of palms as they might have in the past. Taking all this into account, yes, the Vols are going to beat the Gators.

If you looked at our Week 4 predictions, all of us at the All for Tennessee staff picked UT to win. We’re throwing out all of the history for this one and just basing things off of what we’ve seen so far. And basic logic says the Vols would win.

In fact, if it were not for the history, most analysts would call the four and a half point spread in favor of Florida ridiculous. But we can say all this, and it won’t matter. There’s too much evidence to the contrary for too many people. So let’s break down why this year is different. Here are five reasons Tennessee football will beat Florida on Saturday.