Missouri vs. Tennessee Preview

Photo Credit: Andrew Ferguson/Tennessee Athletics

The 6-4 Missouri Tigers come to Knoxville to play Tennessee on Saturday at 3:30. Not only is it Senior Day for the Vols, but they can become bowl eligible with a win. The Tigers lead the short series 4-2, but Tennessee will be playing with a high level of intensity. The team wants to win for the seniors, the fans, and their bowl eligibility. It should be a great atmosphere in Neyland Stadium.

Missouri quarterback, Drew Lock has thrown for 2,647 yards this season, while completing 215-344 (62.5%) of his passes this year. He has  thrown 21 touchdowns and 8 interceptions on the season. Running backs Larry Rountree III and Damarea Crockett have very similiar stats for the Tigers. Rountree has carried the ball 143 times for 758 yards and 9 touchdowns, while Crockett has totaled 699 yards and 7 touchdowns on 144 carries. They each have a run of 59 yards this season. Emanuel Hall has caught 25 passes for 529 yards and 4 touchdowns this year.

Jeremy Pruitt previewed senior day during his press conference on Monday, saying, "I think the seniors we have, most of them have graduated, and the few that have not are graduating this semester. That is why they came here is to get a degree. If you look back there are some really good times for this group and some times they probably wish they had back. In the last 11 months, these guys have really bought in and they have really tried to do what we've asked them to and we are thankful for that. Hopefully some of these guys behind them can follow their lead and the expectations and standards of how they went about their business."

Unlike last week, when I was not expecting Tennessee to win and picked them to lose 24-7, I have a much better feeling about this week. Missouri's offense can be dangerous at times, but the Vols' secondary has grown into a very reliable group. I have Tennessee winning today. It should be a miserable day for Missouri offensive coordinator, Derek Dooley and company.

Preston's Pick: Missouri 17  Tennessee 28

Alex’s Pick: Missouri 34  Tennessee 21