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The Virginia Cavaliers and the Tennessee Volunteers open the regular season at Nissan Stadium in Nashville on Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for noon ET (ABC). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Virginia vs. Tennessee odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.
While technically this is a neutral-site game, don’t be mistaken. There will be plenty of burnt orange in the stands in the Music City, and few supporters of the Hoos, making this a home game for the Vols.
Virginia won just 3 games last season under new coach Tony Elliott, and the team canceled 2 games due to the terrible shooting deaths of 3 Cavaliers players. It was an awful season on and off the field in Charlottesville.
The bad news is that UVA has just 9 total starters returning, QB Brennan Armstrong is now under center for ACC rival NC State, and the offense is in shambles. The defense has some talent, especially along the defensive line, but if the offense can’t maintain long drives, the D will get tired out quickly.
The Volunteers enter the new campaign as a top-10 team. While Tennessee lost QB Hendon Hooker to the NFL, QB Joe Milton III is more than capable of running the offense, and running it well. He’ll have to do without WR Jalin Hyatt, also NFL-bound, but he still has WRs Bru McCoy and Squirrel White at his disposal.
Tennessee is No. 10 in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll.
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Virginia vs. Tennessee odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Friday at 1:01 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Virginia +1350 (bet $100 to win $1,350) | Tennessee -5000 (bet $5,000 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Virginia +28 (-110) | Tennessee -28 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 56.5 (O: -105 | U: -115)
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Virginia vs. Tennessee picks and predictions
Prediction
Tennessee 45, Virginia 13
Moneyline
Tennessee (-5000) is going to win this game, and win it handily, but no one needs $2 bad enough to risk $100. Not even the kid from Better Off Dead wants $2 that much.
PASS.
Against the spread
TENNESSE -28 (-110) laying 4 TDs seems like a lot. But the Volunteers have a prolific offense with plenty of downfield threats, while Virginia +28 (-110) will apply very little pressure from its defensive front, and the Hoos will offer very little resistance as a whole.
The Cavaliers are in shambles on offense, and it’s hard to see them getting much more than into the teens.
Over/Under
OVER 56.5 (-105) is the lean, but go lightly.
While I expect Tennessee to be able to score at will, I have my doubts that Virginia will contribute very much to the scoring. Do the Vols have enough on offense to do most of the heavy lifting to get this across the finish line? Maybe. I think the Vols get well into the 40’s, but the 50’s might be a bit ambitious in the opener. Still, go high, just be careful.
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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.
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