The Tennessee Volunteers reigned supreme on the Third Saturday in September against the Florida Gators, and now their minds are focused on the Georgia Bulldogs to conquer another rivalry (if only they’d do the same to bro-country duo Florida Georgia Line). Here are the NCAA football betting odds for the game, schedule for Saturday, October 1st at Sanford Stadium in Athens:
Tennessee U -3 (-115) 52 (-110) -160
Georgia +3 (-105) 52 (-110) +140
The Vols shook off 11 years of Gator dominance and beat the University of Florida 38-28 in week 4. Tennessee QB Joshua Dobbs rallied the Vols when it seemed as if the Gators were going to extend their winning streak to 12 games. Dobbs threw 16 of 32 for 319 passing yards and rushed for 80 yards on 17 carries for a grand total of 5 TDs – all of which occurred in the second half to come back from as 21-point deficit. “I didn’t see anybody blink,” Vols head coach Butch Jones said.
Or maybe they all timed their blinking to coincide with his. Prior to the game, Gators QB Quincy Wilson said that “nobody has ever seen a duck pull a truck. Florida Gators are going to win, simple as that.” Guess sending Florida to the 23rd spot while they climbed to the 11th was the Vols’ big “duck you” to Wilson.
The Bulldogs had a 3-0 start wrecked by Ole Miss – which even on their way down are dangerous. Georgia was trailing by 31 points at halftime, and by 45 halfway through the last quarter. The Bulldogs lost their first game under head coach Kirby ‘Get’ Smart 45-14, and also lost running back Nick Chubb, who sprained an ankle in the second quarter and never returned – he had 57 yards rushing on 12 carries prior to the injury.
In his stead, Brian Herrien led Georgia with 78 yards and two TDs. Bulldogs freshman QB Jacob Eason struggled to complete 16 passes of 36 attempts for 137 yards with one interception. Georgia went from no. 12 to no. 25 – right n the verge of dropping from the AP poll.
The question is can the Bulldogs get back on track against the Vols? And the answer is no; at least not according to NCAA football betting odds at top sportsbooks. Dobbs is what they call a dual-threat quarterback, while Eason is like the brave little tailor who killed three flies with one blow and then had to face a giant. And since this isn’t a fairytale, Ole Miss took Eason down a peg or three.
The Vols’ front seven are going to try to finish the job on Saturday with returning LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin. Conventional wisdom says that the Vols might slow down a bit and go easy on a lesser ranked opponent while the Bulldogs will be piqued after flying a little too close to the sun. But conventional wisdom is not the same as NCAA football betting odds, and this is a rivalry game, so don’t expect the Vols to look past Georgia.