Everything you need to know about Tennessee football vs Florida

Tennessee football is coming off a tough road loss against Arkansas last week and is looking to bounce back against Florida in Neyland Stadium on Saturday night. 

The Vols' offense struggled throughout the game against Arkansas and has glaring issues that must be addressed quickly if they plan to stay in College Football Playoff contention this season. 

Defensively, Tennessee can compete with anyone in the country. They haven't shown many weaknesses this year besides some struggles in the secondary last week and defending against a dual-threat quarterback. 

The coaching staff has to address those issues if Tennessee wants to beat Florida this week, which has a quarterback capable of consistently competing passes downfield and a dual-threat quarterback sitting behind him waiting for his opportunity to earn the starting job. 

Despite the loss and offensive struggles, the Vols seem to be mostly healthy coming into the Florida game and should be hungry to get back on track and beat a bitter rival to reset their season. 

Matchup History

Tennessee and Florida have a long history, but Florida has mostly dominated the rivalry over the past 20 years. The Vols have won a few games in recent years to add some much-needed wins to the rivalry's record. 

The rivalry began in 1907 when the Vols opened the series with a 9-0 win. Tennessee won the first nine matchups of the rivalry before Florida notched its first win in 1954 with a 14-0 win in Gainsville. It wasn't until the 1970s that the Gators beat the Vols twice in the same decade. 

Tennessee's early success against Florida hasn't translated in recent years. Florida leads the all-time series 32-21 with an 8-2 record in the past ten years. Tennessee won the last matchup in Neyland 38-33 in a game the Vols almost gave away at the end. 

Betting Lines

The line for this game opened last week before Tennessee took on Arkansas in Fayetteville, and it heavily favored Tennessee, with the Vols being a 20-point favorite. 

Since their loss, the odds still heavily favor the Vols but have dropped into the teens. Tennessee is a 15.5-point favorite at the time this is written. The over/under is set at 57.5 points, which means Tennessee is projected to win with an estimated 37-21 score if the oddsmakers are correct. 

Availability Report

Tennessee comes into this game mostly healthy after getting roughed up last week. Tennessee's trio of receivers, Squirrel White, Bru McCoy, and Dont'e Thornton, all missed time against Arkansas, but this week's availability report shows all three should be ready for kickoff on Saturday night. 

The Gators are a bit more beat up than the Vols, with nine players listed as out and five as questionable ahead of the Tennessee game. That doesn't mean much, though, because Arkansas was in the same situation last week.

Kickoff and Broadcast

Tennessee will play its fifth straight night game on Saturday, with a 7:00 PM ET kickoff against the Gators. The Vols won't be on ABC this time around; they will play on ESPN instead.