No. 11 Tennessee vs. South Carolina Picks, Predictions & Preview

Tennessee heads to Columbia to take on South Carolina on Saturday afternoon, with kickoff scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The Volunteers are fresh off handling Alabama, while South Carolina is coming off a bye week and a massive road win over Florida.

I would imagine we have two very confident football teams in this matchup.

I think it’s also a really good coordinator matchup between two guys who aren’t necessarily familiar with one another. I’m talking about Kendal Briles and Jim Knowles.

Kendal is one of these football coaches that I don’t think you can prepare for based on what he did two weeks ago.

It feels like he dusts off something new every single week when I watch him.

Knowles is great at tendency identification. He can recognize formations, personnel and situations, and prepare his defense for what’s likely coming.

Some of that stuff may be available in this football game, but I don’t think Briles has those automatic things he does, whereas most other offenses do.

And that’s what Knowles is great at preparing his football team for.

I also expect Kendal to stretch this defense out a little bit more, make them play a little more hesitant and not allow them to play so far downhill like they’ve been able to do the last couple of weeks.

Tennessee’s O-Line vs. SC’s Defensive Front

For me, the key to this matchup is ultimately which one of these offensive lines, both of which I think have bad matchups in this football game, can actually eliminate the game-wrecker.

Dylan Stewart is a game-wrecker.

Whether it be against David Sanders or Jesse Perry, that kid’s going to win.

But does he absolutely destroy us when he does?

Do we have a massive sack on second-and-three that turns us back into third-and-11?

Or does he force a ball to get thrown high and we give up an interception off of it?

That’s what I’m watching.

I think the other matchup isn’t ideal for South Carolina, either.

I don’t trust the interior of this offensive line as much as some of these others, and I don’t trust any interior offensive line against the way Xavier Gilliam has been playing.

So that’s my key to the matchup.

Are you able to actually manage what’s going on with these game-wreckers on the defensive fronts?

MacIntyre’s First Real Road Test

We’ve talked about it. This is the first real road test for George MacIntyre.

And to this point in the season, I’m not saying this is a defensive problem for teams that have played him, but offensively, they’re not asking this guy to do a whole bunch.

And they shouldn’t, either, because it’s his first year starting.

I think Josh Heupel and his staff have done a great job of getting him a lot of easy work.

Does South Carolina and Clayton White do something to take that away and make this guy actually hold the ball a little bit and drive the ball down the field?

That’s something I’m watching in this football game.

South Carolina X-Factors

When you look at South Carolina’s rush defense, they’re right around 25th in college football. That’s a major key to stopping Tennessee football, and they should have some good shots at that.

I’ve got multiple X-factors in this football game.

I’m still riding the Matt Fuller train, despite the fact that he’s kind of been hemmed up the last two weeks in conference play.

This dude is one play away. If you don’t know about him, you need to know about this guy. He’s a really, really fun runner to watch.

He had some ball-security things going on early in the year, but he’s kind of cleaned that up a little bit. This guy is one touch away from a massive explosive.

I think he has four or five runs over 50 yards already at this point in the season.

How many opportunities can they give him lanes to run in? I think that’s what ultimately slows this Tennessee defense down.

You’re going to have to create balance. You can’t be in situations where Tennessee knows it can get upfield.

If that’s the case, they’re going to kill you.

Can Tennessee’s Defense Keep It Going?

Tennessee’s ability right now to squeeze pockets and get pressure with just rushing three is something I haven’t seen in a while.

Most times you’re rushing three, you’re conceding that the ball is going to get out.

We’re playing coverage. We’re trying to force you to check balls underneath. They’re getting home a lot with this three-man rush.

They’re a 3-3-5 defense right now, if you’re not paying attention. I think they’re the only team in the conference running it.

Everybody else is a 4-2-5 structure. They’re playing three down linemen, three linebackers and five defensive backs on almost every down. Sometimes they’ll go 3-2-6.

It’s really interesting to watch. They’re playing great ball.

Tennessee vs. South Carolina Prediction

Tennessee wins 24-20 on the road.