The Third Saturday in October will have a familiar kickoff time next weekend inside of Neyland Stadium. Tennessee and Alabama are set for a 3:30 p.m. ET start in Knoxville for a sixth consecutive time, the SEC announced this afternoon.
Florida at Texas and Mississippi State at LSU get the noon ET slot. Interestingly enough, Tennessee-Alabama will share the afternoon slot with Auburn-Georgia and Missouri-Ole Miss. The league has yet to designate TV assignments for those three games, with ABC, ESPN
and SEC Network all being possibilities.
Tennessee and Alabama will each wear their home uniforms — orange and crimson — for the first time since 1970. The Volunteers have won two consecutive games in Knoxville in the series, coming out on top of two dramatic matchups. Alabama hasn’t won in Knoxville since the 2020 season.
Despite some shaky moments, Alabama has found a way to throw it into high gear in every game so far this season. Quarterback Keelon Russell was outstanding last weekend against Mississippi State, going 16-22 for 285 yards and three touchdowns. Russell added a 17 yard rushing touchdown as well, powering the Crimson Tide to a 56-23 win over the Bulldogs.
Kalen DeBoer’s group sits at 5-0 on the season, looking every bit the part of a National Championship contender. Though the schedule has been soft to this point, Alabama has put up 45 points in every game so far this season. This week against Georgia marks the start of a big four game stretch — Georgia, at Tennessee, Texas A&M and at LSU.
Early look-ahead lines for this one had both sides even at a pick ‘em. I’m guessing Alabama will be favored by at least a handful of points come this time next week, but that may depend on how Tennessee’s quarterback situation looks this weekend in Fayetteville against Arkansas.
