The Tennessee Vols will head to Athens this weekend for a huge game against the Georgia Bulldogs. 

If Tennessee wins, they'll essentially lock up a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff (assuming they take care of business against UTEP and Vanderbilt to end the season). If the Vols lose, they'll likely need some help to get into the playoff as a two-loss team (the College Football Playoff committee isn't doing Tennessee any favors with their nonsensical ranking process).  

Georgia, meanwhile, will almost certainly be eliminated from the College Football Playoff with a loss to the Vols (the Bulldogs have already lost games to Alabama and Ole Miss this season). 

Suffice it to say, it's a game with massive implications for both programs. 

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart thinks Tennessee Vols starting cornerbacks are playing well

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart met with reporters on Tuesday to discuss the upcoming game against Tennessee and he pointed out that he thinks the Vols' starting cornerbacks are playing as well as any duo in the SEC. 

"The biggest difference in their team is probably their secondary, their corners," said Smart. "Their corners are playing as good as any set of corners in our conference right now.”

Sophomores Jermod McCoy and Rickey Gibson are the two cornerbacks that Smart is referring to. And both players are certainly playing at a high level right now. 

McCoy played 55 snaps last week against Mississippi State (which was more snaps than any other defensive player for the Vols). Gibson played 50 snaps against Mississippi State. The only defensive player aside from McCoy who played more snaps than Gibson was linebacker Arion Carter with 51. That alone shows you how important those two player are to the Vols' defense. 

(Cornerback Jalen McMurray has also played some important snaps this season for Tennessee, though he played only 22 snaps against Mississippi State, earning a 76.9 PFF grade.) 

Tennessee's secondary was heavily questioned during the offseason, with some national media outlets even suggesting that it could be the team's biggest weakness. As the season has progressed, however, the Vols' secondary has proven to be one of the team's biggest strengths (the strong play of safeties Will Brooks and Boo Carter has been important for Tennessee). 

If the Vols are going to pull off the upset in Athens, they'll need their cornerbacks to play one of their best games of the season — especially since Georgia quarterback Carson Beck has struggled in recent weeks (UT has to take advantage of those struggles if they're going to beat Georgia). 

It definitely sounds like Smart is expecting big games from McCoy and Gibson this weekend. And that could be great news for Tennessee. 

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