The Tennessee Vols are set to travel to Starkville this weekend for a matchup against the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

There’s plenty of familiarity between these two programs. Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby and Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel have known each other for over two decades, dating back to Lebby’s time as a student assistant at Oklahoma, where Heupel played quarterback and served as an assistant coach.

Lebby served on Heupel’s coaching staff at UCF for two seasons. He was the quarterbacks coach for both of those seasons and the offensive coordinator for one of those seasons.

Jeff Lebby confirms suspicion about perceived advantage Mississippi State will have in matchup against Tennessee

Lebby and Heupel both run variations of the same unique up-tempo offense.

Most teams that play against that type of offense have to alter the way they practice — that’s something that Georgia head coach Kirby Smart has noted numerous times in the past before playing against Heupel’s Tennessee squad.

Mississippi State, however, doesn’t have to alter the way its defense practices because it’s going up against the same type of offense each day in practice.

Most folks believe that can be an advantage for the Bulldogs.

Lebby noted this week during an appearance on The RTI Low-Down that it certainly helps, but he was also quick to point out that Tennessee will have the same advantage.

“I think for us, defensively, because they see it every single day, I do think that’s an advantage,” said Lebby. “I really do. And, again, there’s going to be great familiarity (between both teams), so I think that does [help]. But just like their defense, they would probably be saying the same thing. So I do think that’s really good for our group, without a doubt.”

Each team will have a few offensive wrinkles that the other doesn’t use, so it’s not like both defenses will know exactly what play is coming every time the ball is snapped. But both defenses will definitely have a unique understanding of tendencies in this type of offense.

In other words, there won’t be many surprises for either side on Saturday. This means the outcome of the game will simply come down to execution. The team that tackles the best, blocks the best, throws the ball the best, and catches the ball the best is the team that’s going to win. That’s not exactly groundbreaking analysis, but that’s where this game will be won.

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Zach Ragan