Vols Game Preview: Put Indiana State Away Early

Dormady (USA Today)

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By Jordan Mayton of VFL Insider

Weekly Vols Game Preview

Tennessee Volunteers (1-0) vs Indiana State Sycamores (0-1)

Saturday, September 9, 3:00 PM on SEC Network

Mercedes-Benz Stadium – Atlanta, GA

What to watch for:

After edging Georgia Tech just five days before, the Vols will return home to Neyland Stadium for an afternoon matchup with Indiana State. It’s time for Tennessee to reel in an early victory and get some rest for their starters.

Monday night’s slugfest saw many Tennessee defenders play nearly the entire game. It’s time for the Vols to go up by three scores at halftime and send the starters to the bench. Look for Quinten Dormady to connect with “The New Dog” Marquez Callaway early into the game. John Kelly will do John Kelly things against a defense that gave up over 32 points-per-game a season ago.

Guarantano
Jarrett Guarantano (left) and Quinten Dormady (right) avoiding each other versus Georgia Tech.

Look for redshirt freshman Jarrett Guarantano to take significant snaps in the second half. The backup quarterback has been rather disappointed with his lack of playing time as seen in Monday night’s game. The New Jersey-native should spend some time with the ones and make the most of it. Freshmen like Ty Chandler, Theo Jackson, Josh Palmer and Shawn Shamburger should get opportunities throughout the game.

On the opposite side, it’ll give injured starters the time they need to rest and recuperate. Evan Berry, Josh Smith, Shy Tuttle and Kendal Vickers are all listed as questionable and likely will not dress. It’s completely understandable as the Vols won’t need them against a lesser opponent. Head coach Butch Jones also noted that Marcus Tatum was injured against Georgia Tech and will not play.

Look, it’s never great to count your chickens before they hatch, but this is Indiana State. They’re and FBS school and a bad one at that. Tennessee will do whatever they want against the Sycamores. The game will be over by halftime. The Vols will win easily.