Tennessee will look to rally in its final two games of the regular season after a disappointing loss to the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens. Tennessee fell to 8-2 after this past week, but its College Football Playoff hopes are still alive with a ten-win season.
Josh Heupel could notch his ninth win of the season on Saturday when the UTEP Miners come to town, which would be the third straight season the Vols have won nine games. Heupel is 35-14 since becoming Tennessee's head coach, with the chance to win 30 games in three seasons if the Vols can win the next two.
The Vols will have to prove their worth to the College Football Playoff committee, though, after dropping out of the top 12 seeds in the updated rankings. Tennessee is No. 11 overall but the No. 13 seed in the Playoffs, making it the first team out if the season ended today.
Despite falling out of the CFP, the Vols' playoff hopes aren't dead yet. Two convincing wins with a little bit of help from other programs across the country and Tennessee could find a spot in the CFP by December.
Matchup History
The Vols and Miners don't have an extensive history, but it does go back 38 years to 1986 when they played for the first time. Tennessee won 26-16, and it hasn't lost since, holding three wins in the series to UTEP's zero.
They met again in 1990 when the Vols won 56-0 to earn a dominant victory in the Johnny Majors era. The last matchup came in 2019 when UTEP came back to Rocky Top and lost 24-0. This matchup marks the fourth matchup of all time, all of which have been played in Neyland Stadium.
Betting Lines
Tennessee is unsurprisingly a big favorite coming into the UTEP game. The Vols are 40.5-point favorites over UTEP, and the over/under sits at 52.5 points. Vegas expects a score around 47-7 in favor of the Vols to get close to the spread and the total.
Availability Report
There is no official availability report for the UTEP game because it is not an SEC conference game. However, the Vols should be close to full strength relative to where they have been in recent weeks.
Tennessee has suffered some season-ending injuries, but Nico Iamaleava and Dont'e Thornton seem to have survived Georgia with minimal bumps and bruises.
Kickoff and Broadcast
Tennessee and UTEP kick off at 1:00 PM ET on SEC Network+. This will be the only game Tennessee will play that is not on national or regional television, as it will only be streamed through ESPN+. Lowell Galindo will call the play-by-play, with Foz Whitaker joining him in the booth. Marilyn Payne will be the sideline reporter.