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Tennessee football vs. Kentucky: Keys to the game for Vols and Wildcats

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 29: A general view of Neyland Stadium during the South Carolina Gamecocks game against the Tennessee Volunteers on October 29, 2011 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 29: A general view of Neyland Stadium during the South Carolina Gamecocks game against the Tennessee Volunteers on October 29, 2011 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images
Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images /

Tennessee football needs a lot to go right to pull off an upset over Kentucky Saturday. Here are 10 keys to the game for the Volunteers and Wildcats.

Well, here we are. Tennessee football is hoping for an upset over the Kentucky Wildcats this weekend in hopes of staying alive to reach a bowl game. Historically, it’s been the other way around between these two teams.

But obviously things are different now on Rocky Top. The Vols are trying to rebuild behind new head coach Jeremy Pruitt, and Kentucky is soaring in its fifth year under Mark Stoops, having just played for a chance to win the SEC East the week before.

Of course, they blew that chance with a loss to the Georgia Bulldogs, but that doesn’t mean that this team still can’t beat Tennessee football pretty easily. In fact, conventional wisdom says they’ll do just that, which would give them two straight wins in the series for the first time since 1976 and 1977 and their first win at Neyland Stadium since 1984.

The Vols obviously have other ideas. But coming off an ugly 14-3 win over the Charlotte 49ers, they have a lot to prove as well. Are they going to be the team that beat the Auburn Tigers and took the South Carolina Gamecocks to the wire, or will they be what we saw last week?

As you can tell, there are going to be numerous factors that determine who actually pulls out this game on Saturday. If the teams had no names behind them it would be a pretty easy call to go with Kentucky. Instead, history and tradition narrows the gap.

What will win out on Saturday? Which advantages will play the biggest role in determining the victor? Take a look at all the factors here. These are our 10 keys to the game when Tennessee football hosts the Kentucky Wildcats.

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