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Tennessee football vs. South Carolina: 10 keys to the game

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 11: Detailed view of the checkered endzone at Neyland Stadium during a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Chattanooga Mocs on October 11, 2014 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 45-10. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 11: Detailed view of the checkered endzone at Neyland Stadium during a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Chattanooga Mocs on October 11, 2014 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 45-10. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee leaves the locker room before a game Tennessee and Missouri at Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo. on Wednesday, Sept. 29, 2021.Kns Tennessee Missouri Football
Tennessee leaves the locker room before a game Tennessee and Missouri at Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo. on Wednesday, Sept. 29, 2021.Kns Tennessee Missouri Football /

Riding a much higher wave of momentum after a shockingly dominant 62-24 win over the Missouri Tigers, Tennessee football takes the field again Saturday looking to get to two games over .500 for the first time all year. Josh Heupel’s team has a great chance to do that as well, as they host the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Although the Vols have a great opportunity here to build off of last week’s win, they can’t let up. An upset loss would put them back in an uphill climb to reach a bowl game. Right now, they have two circled wins and one likely win, this one being the likely win.

The two circled wins are the South Alabama Jaguars and Vanderbilt Commodores. However, they can’t sleep on South Carolina. Keep in mind, this team is 3-2 just like they are. It’s a battle of first-year head coaches set for this noon showdown in Knoxville. These are the 10 factors that will determine the outcome between Tennessee football and South Carolina.

10. Can the Vols handle success?

Heupel is a first-year head coach dealing with a young team and a group of players that haven’t seen much success recently. Dominating a Mizzou team when they were the underdog is naturally going to have them feeling themselves a bit. Add in the fact that South Carolina struggled to beat the Troy Trojans and lost to UT in Columbia, S.C., last year and it’s hard not to bet on Rocky Top.

However, eight of the past nine games in this series have been decided by one score, and seven of those nine have been decided by a field goal or less. What used to be a series the Vols dominated has become incredibly evenly matched, and it doesn’t matter what the records are.

As a result, this is going to be a huge test for Heupel. How does he keep his kids grounded as they get set to play this game? They’ll likely still be motivated and hungry given the state of the program, but avoiding overconfidence is key. Tennessee football has been upset by South Carolina before despite being heavily favored, and it can happen again.

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