7. 3rd and 4th down conversions
When it comes to converting on 3rd and 4th down, there are some cases in which Tennessee football is identical to the Florida Gators. And there are other cases that heavily favor Florida. But they both have enough extreme levels of issues, or success for that matter, that these conversions will be a key in the game.
For starters, UT is out of the top 100 in 4th down conversions, having only converted two in eight attempts all year. On the other hand, Florida is in the top 50 in 4th down conversions, having converted five of seven. That’s a huge difference and one that could play a critical role in this game if it ever gets close.
Meanwhile, the Vols are outside of the top 100 in stopping people on 3rd down, as opponents convert nearly 44.7 percent of the time. Florida could exploit that, as they are in the top 10 in 3rd down conversion percentage, converting 48.4 percent of the time. Meanwhile, they only allow people to convert on them 35.7 percent of the time.
To be fair, the Vols are decent on 3rd downs, converting 43.6 percent of the time. So that is one area where they could rival the Gators and are exactly similar. Both have top 50 4th down conversion percentage defenses too. Taking all that into account, these stats clearly favor UF. But UT can compete in some areas. They just have to dramatically improve in others here.