Alabama vs. Tennessee Prediction, Odds and Key Players to Watch for College Football Week 8

Reed Wallach | 13 Hours Ago

Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava (8) hands the ball to Tennessee running back DeSean Bishop (18) during a NCAA football game between Tennessee and Florida in Neyland Stadium, in Knoxville, Tenn., Oct. 12, 2024. / Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Two teams looking to maintain their College Football Playoff standing meet in Knoxville, Tennessee on Saturday in SEC action. 

After beating Georgia, Alabama has looked far from the National Championship contender it aspires to be. The team lost at Vanderbilt as more than three touchdown favorites and escaped at home against South Carolina as three score chalk. Now, the team is on the road against Tennessee to face a Vols team that may not be as elite as many had believed at the start of the season, off an upset loss at Arkansas and a near-loss at home against Florida. 

Who can find its CFP level and score a win? Oddsmakers have the Crimson Tide installed as favorites, but can Tennessee keep up behind its vaunted defensive line? 

Here’s our betting preview for this SEC showdown. 

Alabama vs. Tennessee Odds, Spread and Total

Spread

• Alabama: -3 (-110)
• Tennessee: +3 (-110)

Moneyline

• Alabama: -160
• Tennessee: +130

Total: 56 (Over -115/Under -105)

Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook

Alabama vs. Tennessee How to Watch

• Date: Saturday, October 19th
• Game Time: 3:30 PM EST
• Venue: Neyland Stadium
• How to Watch (TV): ABC
• Alabama Record: 5-1
• Tennessee Record: 5-1

Alabama vs. Tennessee Key Players to Watch

Alabama

Jalen Milroe: Milroe has been doing it all for the Crimson Tide offense, passing for 1,483 yards with 12 touchdowns while also having the most carries on the team going for 319 yards and 11 touchdowns. The Crimson Tide offense has been up-and-down at times, but the team will look to test an unproven Tennessee secondary. Overall, the Milroe-led passing game is 10th in EPA/pass on the season. 

Tennessee

Nico Iamaleava: The Tennessee quarterback is having more growing pains than expected as he is struggling to push the ball down the field for the normally high-octane Vols offense under head coach Josh Heupel. Iamaleava is completing 87% of his passes of less than 10 yards but is completing only 30% of his passes further than that. He must find the touch on the deep ball or this Vols offense is going to crash out of the CFP race. 

Alabama vs. Tennessee Prediction and Pick

This is an interesting matchup between two teams potentially trending in a downward direction. One team, though, can get back on track with a win on Saturday. 

It’s tough to trust either group at the moment, but I do believe that the Vols have an avenue to success through another team’s ability to keep pace with the Crimson Tide. 

Former Tennessee offensive coordinator Alex Golesh is the head coach at South Florida, who led Alabama in the second half on the road earlier this season. While USF struggled to move the ball, the team’s ability to space out the relatively green Alabama secondary was notable. 

Now, can Iamaleava hit those deep passes to make the Crimson Tide pay? That’s to be seen, but I do believe that the winner of this game will come from who can push the ball down the field with more success. 

While Milroe has feasted on deep passes this season, the Crimson Tide’s run game has been one-dimensional around the quarterback’s ability to extend plays. However, like South Carolina, Tennessee has an elite defensive line that can limit his ability to move around the pocket and break contain. 

I’ll side with the home underdog at a field goal as Tennessee’s defensive line should be up to the test while I think Alabama has too many questions to be laying a field goal on the road against a difficult offensive scheme to handle, even if it isn’t operating at its best. 

PICK: Tennessee +3

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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

Follow Reed on Twitter @ReedWallach and get all his college football bets on betstamp @rw33

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