Tennessee football at Georgia: 10 keys to the game for Vols and Bulldogs

8. Which team gets off the field on third down?

You’re looking at two of the best third down teams in the nation. Tennessee football converts on 50.46 percent of third down attempts, good for No. 11 in the nation. At the same time, they have only let opponents convert 30.97 percent of third down attempts, which puts them at No. 19 in the nation.

Georgia is slightly better on both fronts. The Dawgs convert 52.08 percent of third downs, good for No. 7 in the nation. On defense, they only allow opponents to convert 28.83 percent of the time, good for No. 10 in the nation. Simply put, both teams are elite on both sides of the ball when it comes to third down.

This is more relevant than usual because of their styles. The Vols are about plays, and the Dawgs are about time of possession. UGA is fourth in time of possession on the year, holding the ball for 35 minutes a game. Meanwhile, the Vols are No. 14 in plays per game at just under 75.

Winning third down is crucial to both. Tennessee football, to be fair, has had some issues on fourth down specifically, but those are anomalies. The real story surrounds what they will do on third down throughout the game, as that’ll dictate the pace, which both teams are almost the opposite of in how they operate.