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Tennessee football, SEC, top 25 picks and bets for Week 3 of 2022

By Caleb Calhoun

Fans gather outside of Neyland Stadium on Peyton Manning Pass during the Vol Walk ahead of an SEC football game between Tennessee and Georgia at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Nov. 13, 2021.Kns Tennessee Georgia Football
Fans gather outside of Neyland Stadium on Peyton Manning Pass during the Vol Walk ahead of an SEC football game between Tennessee and Georgia at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Nov. 13, 2021.Kns Tennessee Georgia Football /
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Nov 13, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Power T on the field before a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Georgia Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bryan Lynn-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 13, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Power T on the field before a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Georgia Bulldogs at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bryan Lynn-USA TODAY Sports /

2-0. SEC Network+/ESPN+. 2-0. 7 p.m. ET. 2245. Saturday, Sept. 17. 839. Neyland Stadium; Knoxville, Tenn.

Gambling odds according to WynnBET

  • Line: Tennessee -47.5
  • Over/Under: 67
  • Moneyline: Tennessee -100000; Akron +5000

light. Related Story. Tennessee-Akron: 10 keys to the game

Coming off last week’s ugly but thrilling win against a top 25 team on the road, Tennessee football is back in the top 20 of both polls at No. 15 in the AP Poll and No. 16 in the Coaches Poll. They are now gunning for their first 3-0 start since 2016, and doing that requires beating their second MAC opponent in three weeks.

Josh Heupel’s team is more experienced this year but, after starting fast last year, they have been a bit different. Now, they start a bit slow and go off in the second quarter. It’s hard to know if that will continue, but the real problem is the mistakes, as they made too many to count last week despite beating the Pittsburgh Panthers 34-27 in overtime.

On the other side, the Akron Zips are led by former Mississippi State head coach Joe Moorhead, who lost to the Vols in Knoxville in 2019. Moorhead is a good coach, but he inherits an awful program, one that went 1-11 last year. They needed overtime to beat the Saint Francis Red Flash in the opener and lost 52-0 to the Michigan State Spartans last week.

Prediction.

Akron is awful. They are the easiest team on the Vols’ schedule, even easier than their FCS opponent, UT-Martin. As a result, Rocky Top will cruise to victory. They’ll sleepwalk through the matchup. Don’t worry about that. However, they won’t cover, and that’s the real story.

Next. Vols' 10 worst upset losses in school history. dark

With the hangover from Pitt and Florida next week, Tennessee football has too much going on to care about this game. As a result, the mistakes will continue, particularly on offense, and that’ll be enough not only to keep the Vols from covering but for the game to hit the under.

Tennessee: 52 Akron: 10 (Akron +47.5; Under 67)

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