Can Diego Pavia End the Vols' Season? Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt Prediction, Game Preview, and Betting Lines

Win and get in.

There’s still a question about whether or not the College Football Playoff committee will like a three-loss team that doesn’t play in a conference title game, but Tennessee can avoid all of that.

After winning five of its last six games, beat Vanderbilt, go 10-2, and Tennessee will almost certainly be in at around a 10 seed.

Vanderbilt is already in a bowl, it already beat Alabama, and it already had a great season. But after losing three of the last four games, beat Tennessee, ruin the Vol season, and 2024 would go down as something special.

Tennessee vs Vanderbilt: How to Watch and Game Preview

Date: Saturday, November 30, 2024
Game Time: 12:00 pm ET
How To Watch: ABC
Venue: FirstBank Stadium, Nashville, TN
Teams: Vanderbilt (6-5), Tennessee (9-2)

Why Tennessee Will Win

Reality is starting to kick in for Vanderbilt with losses in three of the last four games, and why?

Third down conversions.

Vanderbilt was a force at keeping the chains moving over the first part of the season, but even though it’s hitting 44% or more of its shots overall, it converted 25% or fewer against Texas, Auburn, and LSU – the three losses in the last four games.

The Commodores don’t have the firepower to keep up if they’re not in total control of the tempo, and …

Tennessee is third in the nation in third down stops. The pass rush and aggressive defensive front should be all over Diego Pavia. That goes hand-in-hand with …

Why Vanderbilt Will Win

Diego Pavia must be great.

Vanderbilt is 4-0 when Pavia completes 75% of his throws and 5-2 when he only completes 55% of them.

He needs to be sharp, able to make plays with both his legs and his arm on third down, and he needs to have one of those days when he is in charge of the whole game.

It feels like the Commodores are playing downhill when they are ahead. That being said…

Tennessee vs Vanderbilt: Who Will Win?

That is how Dylan Sampson and the Tennessee ground game play; they run off the field.

Vanderbilt is 5-0 when they let teams run for less than 100 yards and 0-5 when they don’t.

This season, Tennessee has not run for less than 143 yards yet. That number will be easy for it to reach, and then it will just wait to see where it plays in the first round of the College Football Playoff.