Tennessee Volunteers at Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Sat Sep 12 · 6:00 PM CT
By Pablo SanchezUpdated 8d ago·2 min read
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The Vols and Yellow Jackets haven't met since a 2017 double-overtime classic, and this time both programs show up with brand-new starting quarterbacks and a lot to prove.
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Best BetTennessee
Tennessee's program continuity and the Jim Knowles hire give the Vols the sturdier floor here, even with their own quarterback question mark. Georgia Tech is replacing its QB, its offensive coordinator, and three interior linemen all at once, which is a lot of variance for a road favorite-type crowd to lean on. Back the Vols to win it outright.
Tennessee
+Five straight winning seasons under Josh Heupel
+Hired Jim Knowles to fix a bottom-100 defense
+Historic series edge, 25-17-2 all-time
−No proven starting quarterback locked in
−Defense ranked 92nd nationally in 2025
−Went just 8-5 last season, modest by their standard
Georgia Tech
+9-4 finish and an 8-0 start in 2025
+Five returning All-ACC performers
+Added transfer RB Justice Haynes and QB Alberto Mendoza
−Losing Haynes King's production is a major void
−Lost offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner
−Must replace three interior offensive line starters
This one's been a long time coming. Tennessee leads the all-time series 25-17-2, but the two programs haven't lined up since that wild 42-41 overtime opener back in 2017. Now they're renewing it in Atlanta, and neither team really knows who's taking snaps yet. Josh Heupel is auditioning a three-man quarterback competition in Knoxville, while Brent Key is breaking in a transfer under center after Haynes King exhausted his eligibility.
Georgia Tech's case for optimism is real: a 9-4 finish in 2025, an 8-0 start that had the Jackets flirting with the College Football Playoff picture, and five returning All-ACC performers anchoring the roster. But the OC that ran that offense, Buster Faulkner, is gone, and three interior offensive line starters need replacing up front. Tennessee, meanwhile, spent the offseason patching a defense that fell off a cliff — from 6th nationally in 2024 to 92nd in 2025 — by hiring Jim Knowles away from Ohio State to run the show.
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TENN Tennessee
GT Georgia Tech
Both fan bases are selling this as a measuring-stick game before conference play heats up. Vegas oddsmakers pegged Georgia Tech's season win total at just 6.5, a modest number for a team that opened last year 8-0, and that tells you the market isn't fully buying the reload. Tennessee's got its own uncertainty at quarterback, but Heupel's five straight winning seasons buy him a longer leash than Key's late-season collapse bought the Jackets.
Tennessee Volunteers
Sep 5?vs Furman—
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Sep 3?vs Colorado—
Recent form.
The end of the Haynes King era leaves a real void — he threw for nearly 8,000 yards and ran for over 2,200 more across his Georgia Tech career, and finding that kind of production from a first-year starter is a lot to ask. Alberto Mendoza arrives via transfer to try to fill it, joined by running back Justice Haynes, another big transfer addition, giving the Jackets some proven skill talent even as the quarterback and line settle in.
Tennessee Volunteers
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Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
Tennessee's own quarterback battle is just as unsettled. True freshman Faizon Brandon, a five-star, top-10 overall recruit, has reportedly pushed his way into real contention against redshirt freshman George MacIntyre, with a Colorado transfer also in the mix. Nothing is decided, and Heupel has been in no rush to name a starter — which means this early-September trip to Atlanta could double as a proving ground for whoever wins the job.
