Tennessee vs. South Carolina
Saturday, October 26th, 2019 | 3:00pm CT
Knoxville, TN | Neyland Stadium | TV: SEC Network
Knoxville, TN – The Tennessee Football team will look to get back in the win column this weekend as the Volunteers welcome South Carolina to Neyland Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Big Orange enter this weekend’s contest confident after going toe-to-toe with No. 1 Alabama last Saturday in Tuscaloosa, AL. The Gamecocks have also played well in recent weeks, upsetting then No. 3 Georgia in Athens two weeks ago before losing a tightly contested game at home to No. 9 Florida last week.
Saturday’s contest will be televised on the SEC Network at 3:00pm (CT) with Taylor Zarzour (PxP), Matt Stinchcomb (analyst), and Alyssa Lang (sideline) on the call.
Fans can also listen to Tennessee’s radio broadcast on the Vol Network (WIVK-FM 107.7) as well as satellite radio (Sirius CH. 99, XM Ch. 207, Internet Ch. 967). Bob Kesling (PxP), Tim Priest (analyst) and Brent Hubbs (analyst) will call the action all season long.
Closely Contested Series
Whenever the Vols and Gamecocks meet, it almost always comes down to the game’s final possession. Since 2012, each of the seven contests between the two programs have been one-score games, with six of those meetings being decided by three points or fewer. Four games in that span have come down to the final play (2013, 2014, 2016, 2017).
Warrior Mentality
Senior defensive back Nigel Warrior has taken his game to a new level this season as the leader of the UT secondary. The Georgia native leads the team and is tied for second in the SEC with a career-high three interceptions this year.
In last week’s game at No. 1 Alabama, Warrior led the Vols with six tackles to surpass the 200-career tackle mark. He also picked off his third pass of the season and returned it 59 yards into Alabama territory to squash a Crimson Tide scoring opportunity and set up Tennessee’s lone touchdown of the game.
Entering this Saturday’s contest, Warrior leads the Vols with five pass breakups and is third on the team with 34 tackles. He has been named to the PFF College SEC Defensive Team of the Week three times this season.
Jordan Emerging as Lead Back
Tim Jordan has emerged as a consistent threat out of the backfield for Tennessee in recent weeks. The Florida native ran for a season-high 94 yards last weekend at Alabama and ripped off a career-long 33-yard run in the second quarter. Over the past three games – Georgia, Mississippi State, Alabama – Jordan has a team-high 200 yards rushing and a touchdown.
Defense Limits High-Powered Tide
The Big Orange are coming off one of their better defensive performances of the season last week against Alabama. Tennessee held the top-ranked Crimson Tide and their high-powered offense to season lows in points (35), passing yards (233) and total yards (373).
No Fly Zone
Tennessee’s defense is tied for sixth in the FBS with 10 interceptions this season, with all 10 coming in the last five games. The Vols have multiple interceptions in three games this season and boast seven players who have intercepted a pass. UT’s four picks against Chattanooga on September 14th were the most in a game since also tallying four in the Outback Bowl against Northwestern on Jan. 1, 2016.
Automaglia
Junior kicker Brent Cimaglia continued his stellar season with two more field goals last week at Alabama, with makes from 37 and 32 yards. The Nashville native leads the SEC in field goals made and field goal percentage. His 13 made field goals rank fifth nationally while his 92.9 field goal percentage is tied for 10th.
Cimaglia has made 15 of his last 16 field goal attempts and nine of his last 12 from 40 or more yards. Entering this Saturday’s game, Cimaglia ranks second in program history in field goal percentage (77.5 percent), trailing Alex Walls (77.9 percent) by a slim margin.
Series History: South Carolina
Vols lead series, 25-10-2
The Vols are 16-3 against the Gamecocks in Knoxville and have won two of the past three meetings at Neyland Stadium.
About the South Carolina Gamecocks
The Gamecocks are led by head coach Will Muschamp, who has a 25-21 record in his three-plus seasons with the program.
Offensively, South Carolina relies on a solid ground attack, led by Clemson transfer Tavien Feaster, who leads the team with 82 carries, 492 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns. The Gamecocks will be a little shorthanded on Saturday as fellow senior running back Rico Dowdle is expected to miss the game after getting injured against Florida last week. Dowdle has 78 carries for 457 yards and four touchdowns on the year.
True freshman quarterback Ryan Hilinski has done a nice job stepping in for four-year starter Jake Bentley, who was injured in the season opener. Hilinski has thrown for 1,198 yards and seven touchdowns while completing 60.3 percent of his passes and has thrown just three interceptions. His top target has been senior wide receiver Bryan Edwards, who has 40 receptions for 504 yards and four touchdowns.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Gamecocks have been lead by linebacker duo of Ernest Jones and T.J. Brunson, who rank first and second on the team in tackles with 55 and 50, respectively. Sophomore defensive back Israel Mukuamu is in the midst of a breakout season. He leads the SEC and is tied for fourth nationally with four interceptions and also ranks third on the team with 42 tackles. The trio of Javon Kinlaw (5.0), D.J. Wonnum (4.5) and Aaron Sterling (4.0) have combined for 13.5 of the team’s 17 total sacks on the year.
Game Promos
UT Athletics Hall of Fame: The University of Tennessee Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2019 will be recognized on the field during Saturday’s game after officially being inducted on Friday night during a dinner at the Student Union on campus.
The 2019 class includes: Doug Dickey (coach/administrator), R.A. Dickey (baseball), Christine Magnuson (women’s swimming), Charles A. “Gus” Manning (administrator), Tony Parrilla (men’s track & field) and Candace Parker (women’s basketball).
