Tennessee football at Pittsburgh: Prediction and odds for Week 2 college football

Coming off a dominant 59-10 win over the Ball State Cardinals, Tennessee football is set to hit the road for the first time this year and face its first Power Five opponent as well. Things are taking off quickly for the Vols in Josh Heupel’s second season.

UT, ranked No. 24 in the AP Poll and one spot out of the Coaches Poll, will head to Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pa., to take on the Pittsburgh Panthers. The Vols are looking for revenge in this game, as they lost at home 41-34 to Pitt last year, which was also the second game of the year for both teams.

Pitt comes into this 3:30 p.m. ET matchup ranked No. 17 in the AP Poll and No. 14 in the Coaches Poll. They had to hold off the West Virginia Mountaineers 38-31 in their opener, which was also held last Thursday when Tennessee football was playing.

Tennessee Volunteers at Pittsburgh Panthers odds Week 2

According to WynnBET, the Vols are shockingly a 6.5-point favorite. The over/under is set at 65, and the money line is Tennessee -250 and Pitt +200. This all comes despite UT playing on the road, Pitt being higher ranked in both polls and Pitt winning last year.

Tennessee Volunteers at Pittsburgh Panthers prediction Week 2

With a new quarterback, its star receiver from last year in Jordan Addison gone and a tough opener, there are reasons to not have faith in Pitt against the Vols this year. Sure, they are defending ACC Champions, but that’s a lot to overcome.

Given how familiar Josh Heupel and Pat Narduzzi are with each other, it’s unlikely Heupel is able to throw anything new at Narduzzi. However, the same holds true for Narduzzi, so experience is the edge year, and Rocky Top has it.

Remember, the Vols inserted Hendon Hooker into the lineup in the middle of the Pitt game after Joe Milton III got hurt. That combined with the team learning Heupel’s new system was all going to work against them, and they did have three turnovers while committing tons of penalties.

Yes, Hooker made a bad read on a late fourth down play in the red zone late and then threw the interception to lose the game. However, he hadn’t been the designated starter, and you have to think he would have been more settled in had Tennessee football used him from the start.

Taking all of this into account, the Vols will pull off the win. However, that line is too big. Take Pitt +6.5. UT will be forced to adjust and control the clock a bit more, which honors the namesake of this being the Johnny Majors Classic, but that won’t stop the scoring. Both teams will hang a lot of points in this shootout thriller. Tennessee: 42 Pitt: 38