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The Tennessee Volunteers and the South Carolina Gamecocks are set to square off in an SEC matchup at 7 p.m. ET Nov. 19 at Williams-Brice Stadium. The Volunteers will be strutting in after a win while USC will be stumbling in from a loss.
When you finish with 339 more yards than your opponent like Tennessee did last week, a favorable outcome is almost sure to follow. They claimed a resounding 66-24 victory over the Missouri Tigers at home. The contest was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point Tennessee had established a 49-24 advantage. QB Hendon Hooker had a stellar game for Tennessee as he passed for three TDs and 355 yards on 36 attempts in addition to rushing for one TD and 54 yards. Hooker had some trouble finding his footing against the Georgia Bulldogs two weeks ago, so this was a step in the right direction.
Meanwhile, the evening started off rough for USC last week, and it ended that way, too. They suffered a grim 38-6 defeat to the Florida Gators. The Gamecocks were down 31-6 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too much to recover from. TE Jaheim Bell had a memorable game, but not in the way you want to be remembered: he fumbled the ball once.
The Volunteers are the favorite in this one, with an expected 22-point margin of victory. They have been consistent moneymakers against the spread when favored (5-1), so they might be worth a quick bet.
Tennessee's win brought them up to 9-1 while USC's defeat pulled them down to 6-4. A couple stats to keep an eye on: Tennessee enters the matchup with only three thrown interceptions, good for fourth best in the nation. But the Gamecocks enter the game having picked the ball off 11 times, good for 21st in the nation. We'll see which of these strengths -- offense or defense -- will win out.
