Tennessee football at Auburn: 10 keys to the game

These will be major factors when the Tennessee football Volunteers visit Jordan-Hare Stadium Saturday.

After an unplanned bye week, Tennessee football takes the field again Saturday against the Auburn Tigers looking to try to turn things around amidst a 2-4 record and a four-game losing streak. They’ll have to pull off a huge upset in the process.

Saturday marks a rivalry restored, as the Vols take on a team they played every year from 1956 to 1991. It also comes the same year that a legendary coach from each school during the 1980s, Pat Dye at Auburn and Johnny Majors at UT, passed away this past summer.

Playing this game at home with a 4-2 record and top 25 ranking makes Auburn is a huge favorite. However, Tennessee football did upset them two years ago in their house. Can they do it again? Let’s look at what will determine that. Here are the 10 keys to the game for the Vols and Tigers.

10. Effects off-weeks had on both teams

Did these off-weeks help both teams get healthier or add more rust? In Tennessee football’s case, the Vols have been off twice in three weeks. They came out strong after their first bye against the Arkansas Razorbacks but collapsed in the second half to lose 24-13.

The Auburn Tigers, meanwhile, have now been off for three weeks. That was just as their offense began to come together under Chad Morris against the LSU Tigers, when they scored 48 points. They looked like they could beat anybody that day.

Will three weeks off bring lots of rust, or did it just give Morris and Gus Malzahn more time to install some things into the offense? Also, how healthy did they get during this time off? Lots more factors come into play with Auburn’s back to back bye weeks, but the Vols have their own factors from this time off as well. As a result, this will come into play.