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ESPN’s Football Power Index gave its prediction for who will win the SEC opener for both Tennessee and Oklahoma, giving the Volunteers a 71.2% chance to win in Norman on Saturday night.
Josh Heupel’s UT squad has gotten off to a red-hot start this season, sitting at 3-0 following a trio of blowout victories. The Vols beat Chattanooga and Kent State in Weeks 1 and 3 by a combined 140-3, but they notably took down the ACC’s NC State 52-10 in Charlotte during Week 2.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamalavea has the Tennessee offense resembling what it looked like when Hendon Hooker was at the helm, as the former blue-chip recruit has accounted for 698 passing yards and 7 total scores through 3 games.
Oklahoma claims a similar 3-0 record, but it has not come with as many style points. The Sooners throttled Temple 51-3 in their opener but lost all semblances of an offensive rhythm in an ugly 16-12 win over Houston the following week.
Jackson Arnold and the OU offense again started well against Tulane on Saturday, but they struggled in the second half and had to stave off any form of a rally on their way to a 34-19 win over a solid Green Wave team.
Another major storyline in this game is the return of Josh Heupel to his alma mater, as he led Oklahoma to the 2000 BCS National Championship Game and was the runner-up in the Heisman Trophy race that same season as the starting QB.
Heupel then worked his way up to be the offensive coordinator under Bob Stoops in 2014 after serving as the quarterbacks coach since 2006. But, Heupel was let go following an 8-5 campaign in ’14.
The Volunteers and Sooners are set to kick off at 7:30 ET in Norman, with the game being televised by ABC.
Current Missouri student entering my third year of covering Tiger football and basketball. Contributor to The Transfer Portal CFB and overall college athletics enthusiast.
