Everything you need to know about Tennessee vs Mississippi State

Tennessee football is coming off yet another rivalry win against Kentucky as the Vols continue to find the win column led by their stout defense. Tennessee's 28-18 win moves them to 7-1 on the season as they hit the home stretch of the college football season. 

Tennessee will welcome Mississippi State into Neyland Stadium this week as the Bulldogs look to build some momentum on Tennessee's homecoming. 

The two-win Bulldogs are led by Jeff Lebby, a longtime friend of Josh Heupel, so both coaches will be familiar with each other and possibly with their expected game plan coming into this game. Both coaches have worked together throughout their careers at Oklahoma. 

Both teams have struggled offensively throughout the season, but Tennessee's elite defense is the biggest difference. If the Vols can continue to pour pressure onto opposing quarterbacks and force mistakes, Tennessee shouldn't have any issue putting away the Bulldogs. 

Matchup History

Tennessee and Mississippi State had met 46 times on the gridiron since 1907, when the two teams met for the first time in Memphis. Tennessee was victorious 11-4 in that game and took the first game of the series before losing the next three. 

The Vols' first four wins against the Bulldogs came in Memphis. Their first win in Knoxville wasn't until 1925 when the Vols won 14-9. 

Both teams have met six times since 2000. Tennessee has a 5-1 record against Mississippi State over that span and a 29-16-1 all-time record against the Bulldogs. 

Betting Lines

Tennessee comes into this week as a big favorite. According to Fanduel, the Vols are a 24.5-point favorite at the time of this writing. The over/under is set at 61.5 points, which indicates that Vegas is expecting a high-scoring game. 

Availability Report

Tennessee's availability report hasn't changed much in recent weeks, but the Vols have one new admission to the report. Running back DeSean Bishop has been ruled out for the Mississippi State game, joining DB Jourdan Thomas, LB Keenan Pili, and LB Edwin Spillman. 

Mississippi State has several players ruled out for this week. QB Black Shapen, CB Traveon Wright, WR Creed Whittemore and Trent Hudson, DL Kedrick Bingley-Jones and Kalvin Dinkins, RB Keyvone Lee, and OL Canon Boone have all been ruled out for the Bulldogs. 

Kickoff and Broadcast

Tennessee and Mississippi State will play at 6:00 PM ET on ESPN. Dave Pasch and Dusty Dvoracek will call another night game in Neyland.