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Two ranked teams looking to pick up a key non-conference victory will clash on Saturday night when No. 19 Oklahoma visits No. 23 Tennessee.
OKLAHOMA SOONERS (1-0) at TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS (1-0)
Sportsbook.ag Line: Oklahoma -2, Total: 63
Neither school had any problems moving the football in last week's season openers, as the Sooners rolled up 539 yards in a 41-3 win over Akron and the Volunteers amassed 604 total yards in a 59-30 victory over Bowling Green. Both quarterbacks were exceptional in these victories, as Oklahoma's Baker Mayfield threw for 388 passing yards and 3 TD, while Tennessee's Joshua Dobbs was an efficient 15-of-22 for 205 yards and two touchdowns. But the difference in this game could be pass defense, as the Sooners limited their Week 1 opponent to 88 yards on 26 pass attempts while the Vols surrendered 433 passing yards on 51 attempts.
Although Oklahoma is just 1-4 ATS in its past five games away from home, Tennessee is a pedestrian 5-8 ATS in the past 13 meetings against non-SEC foes. When these teams met last season in Norman, the Sooners cruised to a 34-10 victory, as they outgained the Vols by a wide 454 to 313 margin.
Oklahoma is 7-2 ATS in non-conference tilts over the past three seasons, but is also 14-34 ATS since 1992 when allowing 150 to 200 rushing yards. Considering the Vols are coming off a 399-yard rushing performance last week, the Sooners run-stop unit will surely be tested.
While Oklahoma enters this contest with no major ailments, Tennessee will likely be short-handed by four defensive players who are all expected to miss Saturday's contest -- DBs LaDarrell McNeil (neck) and Max Arnold (knee) and DLs Andrew Butcher (knee) and Danny O'Brien (suspension).
Oklahoma QB Baker Mayfield was a bit of a surprising choice by head coach Bob Stoops to start ahead of Trevor Knight, but the junior transfer from Texas Tech shined in his Sooners debut by completing 70% of his passes for 11.8 YPA and a 198.5 rating. Eight different Oklahoma receivers caught at least two passes, led by freshman RB Joe Mixon's 115 yards on three grabs which included a 76-yard touchdown. The only disappointment in new offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley's Air Raid offense was the lackluster performance from star RB Samaje Perine who gained only 33 yards on 11 carries. Having lost three starters on the O-Line last season, Oklahoma needs to figure out how to run the football more effectively. But the team should have success against a mediocre Tennessee run-stop unit that allowed 168 rushing YPG and 4.3 YPC last season.
Defensively, the Sooners completely manhandled Akron last week in holding the Zips to 3.3 yards per pass attempt, 3.1 yards per carry and just 4-of-19 conversions on third downs. The one negative for the team was penalties, as Oklahoma was whistled nine times for 90 yards.
Tennessee drove up and down the field at will against Bowling Green last Saturday, gaining 6.2 yards per carry with six touchdowns on the 64 rushing attempts. JUCO transfer RB Alvin Kamara was the star with 144 yards on 15 carries (9.6 YPC) and two touchdowns, as he outplayed 230-pound workhorse RB Jalen Hurd who ran for 123 yards and three scores, but needed 23 carries to reach that mark (5.3 YPC). QB Joshua Dobbs also ran for 89 yards on 7.4 YPC with a touchdown to go along with his 205 yards and 2 TD through the air.
The Volunteers had six players catch either two or three passes in the rout, and nobody had more than three or less than two receptions. Although running the ball was the preferred method last week for the Vols, Oklahoma was much more potent in stopping the run last year (106 YPG, 4th in nation) than it was in defending the pass (276 YPG, 9th-worst in FBS).
Speaking of defending the pass, Tennessee had no answer for Falcons QB Matt Johnson last week, allowing him to throw for 424 yards on 8.7 YPA with 2 TD and 0 INT. This was very surprising considering the Vols returned three starting defensive backs from a unit that allowed only 196 passing YPG last season (23rd in nation).
