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Tennessee football is sitting well in the initial CFP rankings as it prepares to face Mississippi State.
The Vols (7-1, 4-1 SEC) debuted at No. 7 in the rankings before hosting the Bulldogs (2-7, 0-5) on Saturday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN) at Neyland Stadium
Here is what to know about the matchup:
Nico Iamaleava is coming off his best game
Nico Iamaleava had the best passing game against a power-conference opponent in his career against Kentucky.
The redshirt freshman completed 28 of 38 passes for 292 yards and a touchdown in the 28-18 win against the Wildcats. It was the first time Iamaleava has passed for more than 250 yards against a power-conference opponent. Iamaleava was a couple of wide receiver drops away from an even bigger game.
“There were some really special plays by him during the course of the game,” Vols coach Josh Heupel said Monday. “Continued to compete extremely hard, played independent. Just continuing to grow as a player. Really good performance.”
The heralded recruit could be peaking at the right time as Tennessee heads into November, which it starts against a lousy Mississippi State defense.
CFP: Here’s what CFP selection committee said about Tennessee football playoff resume
Michael Van Buren Jr. has improved Mississippi State offense
Michael Van Buren Jr. took over the starting quarterback spot after a season-ending injury to starter Blake Shapen in mid-September. He will make his sixth straight start at Tennessee with his first four starts all coming in SEC play.
“I just think he continues to get better in what they’re doing,” Heupel said. “Young player that is continuing to get better.”
The Bulldogs are averaging 27.6 points with Van Buren as QB1. The freshman was a four-star recruit in the 2024 class.
Mississippi State has the SEC’s worst defense
Mississippi State has the worst defense in the SEC…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/tennessee-football-vs-mississippi-state-100153189.html
Author : Knox News | The Knoxville News-Sentinel
Publish date : 2024-11-07 10:01:53
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