GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Tennessee starts the season 1-3 for the first time since 2008, falling to Florida in the Swamp, 34-3. The 31-point margin of defeat is the worst against the Gators since 2007. The Vols have a bye next week before hosting No. 3 Georgia on October 5.
Halftime Stats:
The first half has been a half to forget for the Vols. Florida is leading Tennessee in the yards category, 250 to 88. The Gator defense has held Tennessee's offense to only 73 passing yards and 15 rushing yards.
Jarrett Guarantano is playing less than impressive so far, he is 8-15 with 73 passing yards and two interceptions. His accuracy has wavered in the first half, he missed a wide-open Dominick Wood-Anderson in the second quarter.
Florida's Kyle Trask is playing great, he is 12-14 with 204 passing yards and one touchdown in the first half.
The wait is finally over, game day for Tennessee and Florida is finally here!
The Tennessee Vols are looking to end a 16-year drought of winning in the Swamp. The Vols last won in Gainesville in 2003 when quarterback Casey Clausen led Tennessee to a 24-10 victory. This win in Gainesville moved Tennessee to 3-0 on the season.
The story is a little different in 2019 going into the Swamp.
The Vols are 1-2 after starting with two straight losses to Georgia State and BYU. Tennessee was able to get their offense moving last week against Chattanooga scoring 45 points in a 45-0 win. Now Tennessee is looking to avoid their first 1-3 start since 2008. Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano was much improved in week three against Chattanooga. He was 7 for 8 with 142 yards and three touchdowns in the team's first win. This will be Guarantano's first career start in the Swamp. He came in for one play in Gainesville in 2017.
The ninth-ranked Gators are coming into this game with a 3-0 record. Florida was able to bounce back with a backup quarterback and score 19 points in the second half to beat Kentucky last week. Florida will be without starting quarterback Feleipe Franks after he fractured and dislocated his ankle, according to Gators' coach Dan Mullen. The Gators were forced to scratch and claw to get a win over Miami in their first game, and had to come from behind last week.
Tennessee will have their hands full this week against the Gators. The Vols will need the offensive line to have their best performance thus far to protect Guarantano and give runningbacks Ty Chandler and Erik Gray the best chance to be successful. Senior wide receivers Jauan Jennings and Marquez Callaway will need to have great performances to help propel the Vols ahead of the Gators. Jennings has a great history of playing against Florida.
Tennessee's defense will have to be prepared for two different quarterbacks in today's game. "Moving forward, honestly, we’re going to play both guys moving forward,” said Mullen last Saturday. Kyle Trask and Emory Jones are both expected to take the field against Tennessee.
Tennessee's defense may see two guys who have been in the news for issues off the field. Defensive back Bryce Thompson and linebacker Jeremy Banks both traveled with the team to Gainesville. Thompson was arrested for a domestic situation before the season, and Banks was arrested last Saturday for driving with a suspended driver's license. Pruitt has not said whether Thompson or Banks will play in today's game.
The Vols have a former coach on their side in this week's game. Lane Kiffin says Tennessee will beat Florida 24-23 in the Swamp.
Tennessee has a 4-6 record in the last 10 games against ranked opponents, according to sports-reference.com. That stat is not bad for the Vols, and when it comes to playing Florida there have been a few games that were decided by one point. The Gators beat Tennessee in Knoxville 10-9 in 2014 and in 2015 Florida beat the Vols 28-27 in the Swamp.