Alabama vs. Tennessee Week 7 Predictions 10/15/16

Well, Alabama silenced that debate with an nearly inconceivably dominating 49-10 victory over Tennessee Saturday at Neyland Stadium.

The Tennessee Volunteers host the Alabama Crimson Tide in week 7 of the college football schedule on Saturday, kick off time at 3:30 PM ET, at Neyland Stadium. Look at it this way: Alabama’s defense and special teams outscored Tennessee 14-10. The Crimson Tide are rarely chewed up on the offensive end, and although the Vols’ offense has impressed lately, Josh Dobbs couldn’t quite crack the code on Sunday.

Alabama’s offense absolutely rolled over Tennessee’s defense, to be sure.

It also extended Alabama’s winning streak to 10 games over Tennessee.

Dobbs finished 16 of 27 for 92 yards and had minues-31 yards rushing. Still, the 18-year-old has had a hard time when pressured, something Tennessee pass rushers Derek Barnett and Corey Vereen have done with regularity this season with seven combined sacks among them. The Vols must figure out how to divide carries between Hurd and Alvin Kamara, who had a school-record 312 all-purpose yards last week. Excluding garbage time the Vols averaged 2.1 yards per play and managed 24 rushing yards. “We encourage the players to stay focused to the things that matter”. If the Volunteers can upset the Crimson Tide at home, it will go a long way in helping Auburn win the SEC West.

Fitzgerald (Richmond Hill High alumnus) struck first in OT with a 2-yard touchdown run, but Hill answered with a QB sneak to send it into double overtime.

The next step for Hurts is to develop into a more consistent passer. They’ve won three of their last four and are sitting at 3-3, but are only No. 111 in total offense and No. 95 in total defense. Tennessee had 1 yard per carry.

Hurts added two more short rushing touchdowns in the second half, and the Tide added another non-offensive touchdown with Eddie Jackson’s punt return to put this game away. The Crimson Tide are living up to an impossible standard, and the most frightening part here is the combination of Hurts with a defense loaded with the standard amount of National Football League talent might be Saban’s most risky combination yet.

But Alabama immediately answered, moving 65 yards in six plays, mostly on the ground, the last 45 coming on a Hurts keeper down the right sideline. Tech a two-touchdown lead that would only build over the final 20 minutes of play.

It was over for Tennessee.

BAMA ON THE ROAD: Alabama’s first two SEC road games had the common denominator of inconsistency. And after trailing at halftime 21-7, the Vols fell behind 28-7 in the third. Harrison went the distance untouched. With that defense as a backstop (and a scoring machine, too) the Tide offense swing and sometimes misses – and then crushes a ball out of the park (see Bo Scarbrough’s 85-yard touchdown run as an example). Hurts was 16 of 26 for 143 yards with an interception against Tennessee. That started early in the day with Oklahoma’s Dede Westbrook’s second-straight, three-touchdown performance and continued with Travis Rudolph’s 13-catch, 238-yard game for Florida State. The 11 non-offensive scores for Alabama are the most in a single season during the Nick Saban era. Ronnie Harrison’s 58-yard interception return was the Tide’s eighth defensive touchdown of the season.

Alabama forced a three-and-out. In the aftermath, Alabama players filed into that tunnel with Crimson Tide fans screaming.