Tennessee vs. Ohio State CFB Playoff First Round Game Lines

Tennessee Volunteers Playoff First Round Game Lines

Last week, the Tennessee Volunteers had the week off as the Georgia Bulldogs and Texas Longhorns battled in the SEC Championship Game. Of course, nobody at Tennessee will ever admit it, but like other SEC programs, they would rather have a week off than play in a conference championship game in Atlanta that could, in reality, be meaningless. The Vols were considered to be a sure thing for the College Football Playoff, and the time off allowed them time to heal mentally and physically. Now, Tennessee is preparing to face Ohio State at The Shoe in the CFP.

College Football Playoff Betting Lines

Tennessee Volunteers +7.5

Ohio State Buckeyes -7.5

Over/Under: 47.5

Tennessee Volunteers Weekly Matchup

In postseason action, on Saturday, December 21, 2024, the Tennessee Volunteers will face the Ohio State Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, OH. Kickoff time is set for 8 p.m. ET, and television coverage will be on ABC and ESPN.

Tennessee will be attractive to Wise Guys as a quality road team getting a more favorable betting on college football using crypto road team price.

Last game, the Ohio State Buckeyes lost 13-10 against the Michigan Wolverines as 19.5-point home favorites. The game went under the total of 41.5. Ohio State has a record of 10-2 straight up, 6-6 against the spread, and 5-7 over/under the total. Ohio State ranks 38th for total offense, 38th for passing, 60th for rushing, and 17th for scoring. Defensively, they rank 1st overall, 1st against the pass, 6th against the rush, and 1st for points allowed. Also, Ohio State ranks 29th for fewest turnovers lost and 76th for takeaways.

Tennessee Volunteers Weekly Recap

Last game, the Tennessee Volunteers won 36-23 against the Vanderbilt Commodores as 10-point road favorites. The game went over the total of 47. Tennessee has a record of 10-2 straight up, 7-5 against the spread, and 7-5 over/under the total. Tennessee ranks 10th for total offense, 63rd for passing, 9th for rushing and 10th for scoring. Defensively, they rank 5th overall, 16th against the pass, 9th against the rush, and 4th for points allowed. Also, Tennessee ranks 45th for fewest turnovers lost and 48th for takeaways.

The Tennessee Volunteers have secured a playoff spot with a huge second-half performance and victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Tennessee scored four passing touchdowns, with two being Dont’e Thornton Jr. on the receiving end. The other two would come from Mike Matthews and Miles Kitselman. Iamaleava would throw the most touchdown passes of his SEC conference play career so far. The red-shirt freshman looked like a veteran as he was the star of the game.

Tennessee’s defense had a huge safety in the second half, which was the biggest play of the game for them. The other big play was from Jermod McCoy, as the transfer corner got a huge interception in the end zone. Vanderbilt showed some fight offensively in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough for them to take the Vols' lead.

This is the second season in three years that the Vols finished with ten wins in the regular season. The last time was in 2022 when Hendon Hooker led the Vols.

Tennessee will find out next Sunday who it will face in the playoffs. They now hope to host the first-round game inside Neyland Stadium, which is full of loud, screaming Tennessee fans.

“Finishing the way that we needed to and that we wanted to always is sweet, and these guys earned the right for this to be a big game," head coach Josh Heupel said. "They went out, they took it.”

Tennessee put together TD drives of 91 and 96 yards in the first half. The Vols then beat Vandy at its own game of keep away after not even managing 10 minutes of possession in the first half. They finished with the edge in that stat, outgaining Vandy 538-212.

2024 Tennessee Volunteers Football Schedule

The Tennessee Volunteers have a glorious history but a more checkered period of tumult over the past 15 years.

Tennessee has a total of six claimed national championships and eight unclaimed nattys. The last national title for the Vols was in 1998, their first since 1967. Additionally, Tennessee has 16 conference championships in its history.

Tennessee has not had a double-digit win season since 2007, their only one since 2004. The Volunteers have not finished in the national rankings in 2015 and 2016, their only two campaigns since 2007. Tennessee has not ended up in the final national top ten since 2001.

The Tennessee descent began when they won the 1998 national championship. Then-head coach Phillip Fulmer got too comfortable, and recruiting slipped badly. Fulmer was forced into retirement after the 2008 season, and the program has floundered ever since.

Lane Kiffin, Butch Jones, Jeremy Pruitt, and Josh Heupel followed Fulmer with limited success. Jones seemed on the cusp with 9-4 seasons in 2015 and 2016 but could not maintain momentum.

Tennessee has relied too much on its past for its future. Recruiting and the SEC have changed dramatically since Fulmer was at the peak of his power.

Ironically enough, Tennessee has grown rapidly in population over the past two decades, with far more football talent available. But that has not translated into recruiting success for the Volunteers.

Tennessee has had plenty of great players in its storied past. Namely, Doug Atkins, Peyton Manning, Reggie White, Eric Berry, and Johnny Majors are among the Big Orange greats.

2024-2025 College Football Schedule

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