A jampacked opening week of college football closes on Labor Day with the second ever college football game in brand-new Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Tennessee Volunteers were one of the most hyped teams in college football entering the last two seasons, but there is no buzz surrounding them this year. Without talent like Josh Dobbs, Alvin Kamara, Josh Malone, and Derek Barnett, no one is expecting the Vols to compete for a division title in 2017. They will start the season against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
Watch this regular season Week 1 matchup live on Monday, September 4, 2017 at 8 p.m. ET at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
College Football Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu
Tennessee -3
Georgia Tech +3
Over/Under 56
Odds Analysis
The Volunteers are 4-0 ATS in neutral site games under Butch Jones and most of those were big wins. Three came in bowl games against overmatched Big Ten opponents, while the fourth was against Virginia Tech in an early season game at Bristol Motor Speedway last season.
Georgia Tech has been up and down the last few seasons under Paul Johnson. The Yellow Jackets had mixed results in ACC play, going 4-4, but were fantastic against SEC East teams last season. They beat Georgia, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky and covered all three games handily.
Matchup to Watch
For Tennessee to get the win, it is going to have to be able to stop the run. The Yellow Jackets ripped up their SEC East counterparts on the ground last season with their triple option attack and have eight starters returning to that offense.
However, Georgia Tech no longer has the outstanding Justin Thomas to call the shots. Thomas was phenomenal during his time with the Jackets. He was able to run Johnson’s offense effectively and was a much better passer than most option quarterbacks are.
The Jackets will also have to replace two of their offensive linemen, including center Freddie Burden. Center may be the easiest position to replace on the line, but Burden was the only player on this front to earn all-conference honors in 2016.
Tennessee defensive coordinator Bob Shoop has been scheming to stop Georgia Tech’s offense all offseason. The Volunteers no longer have Barnett and lost three of their four starting defensive linemen from last season, so the front seven has some question marks.
The conventional wisdom is that triple option offenses work in this modern era of football because they are so different to what teams typically run. Defenses have a hard time adjusting with just a week worth of preparation. However, Tennessee has had plenty of time to know how to gameplan to stop this attack.
Player to Watch
Jones is still mum about who will be the Volunteers quarterback to start the season, but it looks increasingly obvious that Quinten Dormady will be the guy.
Dormady was the most likely candidate to start as he was Dobbs’ backup last season and the other potential options are inexperienced underclassmen. He played well in limited action last season and is more of a pocket passer than Dobbs was.
That being said, don’t be surprised if freshman Jarrett Guarantano gets some playing time. He has been described as the quarterback of the future and Jones won’t be afraid to insert him in the lineup if Dormady struggles. Guarantano is more in the mold of Dobbs and can use his legs to create plays.
Free ATS Pick
The under seems like the best bet in this matchup. Tennessee will probably be able to slow Georgia Tech’s offense with this much time to prepare. Conversely, Georgia Tech has eight returning starters on defense and Tennessee has a ton of questions to be answered on the offensive end. This game will be close, but neither team will score more than 30.
College Football Odds: Volunteers 24, Yellow Jackets 20
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