Remember what happened the last time a nonconference opponent from Georgia came to Neyland Stadium?
Georgia State beat Tennessee 38-30 in the 2019 season opener.
But Tennessee fans shouldn’t be alarmed when the Vols face Kennesaw State on Sept. 19. Former UT coach Jeremy Pruitt was the brain behind the Georgia State upset. The program is now in more capable hands. Josh Heupel is more likely to beat a 25-point underdog by 50 points than lose to it.
Something else: Kennesaw State is no Georgia State. In fact, it lost to Georgia State on Sept. 12 by 14 points.
Tennessee 51, Kennesaw State 17: The way the Vols have been losing players to injury, Heupel might be tempted to take out his starters as soon as possible against the outmanned Owls.
But I would
recommend he keep his first-team offense on the field long enough to fine tune its passing game in Tennessee’s Texas tune-up.
LSU 34, Ole Miss 20: Louisiana governor Jeff Landry has requested that the Rebels exhibit Southern hospitality upon coach Lane Kiffin’s return to Oxford. How’s that for a sense of humor?
I’m sure Ole Miss fans will respond as well as LSU fans would have if an archrival had taken their coach on the brink of the College Football Playoff. Suffice to say: Quarterbacks Trinidad Chambliss and Sam Leavitt won’t be the only ones showing off their throwing arms.
Georgia 42, Arkansas 17: Having disposed of two feeble nonconference opponents, the Bulldogs now can test themselves against SEC competition.
Just kidding. Georgia won’t get tested until Sept. 26 against Oklahoma.
Vanderbilt 20, NC State 16: The Commodores haven’t dazzled anybody while beating Austin Peay and Delaware. But I can’t back the Wolfpack after watching it gain only 168 yards in a 34-8 loss to Virginia in its season opener.
Texas A&M 30, Kentucky 14: After watching Alabama reel off 32 unanswered points in the second half against the Wildcats, I concluded that the Aggies won’t need an offense to triumph at Kyle Field. They scored two defensive touchdowns in Week 2 and held Missouri State to 67 yards in the season opener.
Alabama 37, Florida State 17: Why did the Seminoles fire athletic director Michael Alford?
Answer: Because they didn’t have enough money to fire football coach Mike Norvell.
South Carolina 30, Mississippi State 27: Don’t assume LaNorris Sellers will give the Gamecocks the quarterback advantage at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mississippi State sophomore Kamario Taylor has passed for 581 yards and rushed for 145 yards while accounting for eight touchdowns.
Missouri 41, Troy 14: Speaking of quarterbacks, Ole Miss transfer Austin Simmons has completed 75% of his passes and thrown for seven touchdowns. His accuracy on deep-out routes has been uncanny.
Under-publicized Missouri wide receivers Cayden Lee and Donovan Olugbode have been the biggest beneficiaries. They have combined for 24 catches and 434 yards.
Auburn 27, Florida 24: Tigers quarterback Byrum Brown, a USF transfer, was good enough to beat the Gators last season in The Swamp. With Jordan-Hare’s backing, he can do it again.
Oklahoma 31, New Mexico 9: Sooners quarterback John Mateer can be fun or maddening to watch, depending on how he is throwing. You might have thought he had reinjured his right thumb the way he was throwing in a loss to Michigan.
Texas 49, UTSA 20: The No. 1 Longhorns could be excused for not giving the Roadrunners their undivided attention. They might be looking back on their epic comeback from a 23-3 fourth-quarter deficit to beat Ohio State or looking ahead to their Sept. 26 game against Tennessee.
Such distractions shouldn’t prevent them from overwhelming UTSA, which needed a fourth-quarter rally to top Texas State in its previous game.
Record: 31-1 (.969), 19-13 (.595) against the spread.
John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee football now upset-proof vs nonconference teams from Georgia | Adams
