Early season road matchup just became even more difficult for the Tennessee Vols, officially making it a trap game
It’s no secret what the Tennessee Vols need to do to return to the College Football Playoff in 2025. Tennessee needs to win at least one game against either the Georgia Bulldogs, Alabama Crimson Tide, or Florida Gators, while taking care of business in the other nine games on the schedule. That would result in […]
It’s no secret what the Tennessee Vols need to do to return to the College Football Playoff in 2025.
Tennessee needs to win at least one game against either the Georgia Bulldogs, Alabama Crimson Tide, or Florida Gators, while taking care of business in the other nine games on the schedule.
That would result in Tennessee finishing with a 10-2 record in the regular season, which should secure the Vols a spot in the playoff.
Most fans tend to focus on the Alabama/Florida/Georgia part of that scenario. And while that’s certainly the most daunting part of the schedule for the Vols, it’s not exactly automatic that Tennessee will “take care of business” in the other nine matchups.
In fact, recent history suggests they won’t.
The Volunteers have lost a road game that they shouldn’t have lost in each of the last three seasons (at South Carolina in 2022, at Missouri in 2023, and at Arkansas in 2024).
Now, that doesn’t mean that Tennessee will lose a road game that they shouldn’t lose in 2025. It’s certainly possible that Josh Heupel’s program takes a big step forward this fall.
There is, however, one early-season game that should be classified as a “trap game” for the Vols.
Tennessee travels to Starkville on Sept. 27 to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. The Vols are obviously the more talented team. But Mississippi State should be an improved team this season. And Starkville is never an easy place to play.
It’s especially tough at night. We don’t know what time the Mississippi State game will kick off yet — it will either be a late afternoon or a night game — but we do know the Bulldogs are planning a “white out” at Davis Wade Stadium.
White out games at Mississippi State can be extra challenging. The crowd usually has a little more juice for those games. And considering Tennessee’s struggles on the road under Heupel, I don’t think this is a game that can be marked down as an automatic win. There’s a chance this game is a real battle for the Vols.
One other thing that makes this game challenging for Tennessee is that Mississippi State runs the exact same offense as the Vols, which means, in theory, the Bulldogs should be able to defend it better than most teams that are at their same talent level.
Tennessee will need to treat this game like it’s against Alabama or Florida to avoid an unexpected loss.
Tennessee Volunteers News
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