Just about everyone is sitting on pins and needles waiting for the Week 1 matchup between Tennessee football and Georgia to get here. As you're probably well aware of, the Dawgs have dominated the rivalry, posting eight straight wins over Tennessee.
Head man Josh Heupel has had no luck in his games against Georgia, with him holding an 0-5 record against the hated SEC rival. Are things trending in the right direction for UT to pull off an upset against the No. 6 team in the country this weekend?
That's what some people see happening for No. 15 Tennessee in front of a packed Neyland Stadium. Leading up to kickoff too, the one and only Paul Finebaum has decided to place some extra pressure on Kirby Smart and Co., surprisingly saying on a podcast with Greg McElroy that the UGA faithful might go into panic mode if a W isn't posted.
Kirby Smart says the quiet part out loud about playing at Tennessee and Neyland
Paul Finebaum admitted he doesn't know what to expect in Tennessee vs. Georgia
“They will suddenly become this week’s overreaction (if they lose),” Finebaum said courtesy of Saturday Down South. “Their fans have been on a little bit of an edge for a while. This is a really big game for Kirby Smart. I don’t know what to expect in this game, quite frankly.”
Hey Paul, keep talking like that pal - we don't mind one bit if all the pressure goes on Kirby to post a win and the Vols can just focus on the game and forget about any outside noise. Said outside noise is surely coming in, though, especially on Heupel.
The last thing he wants is to lose yet another game to Georgia, especially with Tennessee's offense looking so sharp two weeks into the new season. Joey Aguilar has been a blessing from the Football Gods, while the defense has been able to stay tough even with cornerbacks Jermod McCoy and Rickey Gibson III out of action.
Defensive lineman Jaxson Moi is questionable for this game, while David Sanders Jr., the 5-star freshman offensive tackle, is expected to miss this one. That's an injury setback for the Vols, but luckily Jesse Perry has been a beast at RT for Heupel. Soon enough, these two teams will take the field for a back-and-forth game. Will a Tennessee win be on the way for everyone in Knoxville to enjoy? We sure hope so.