Indiana Hoosiers vs Tennessee Volunteers Picks, Odds, Gator Bowl Prediction 1/2/2020

Game: Indiana Hoosiers vs Tennessee Volunteers

Date: Thursday, January 2, 2020

Gator Bowl

Location: TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, FL

TV: ESPN

Odds/Point Spread: Tennessee +1.5

Total/Over-Under: 54

TIAA Bank Field is the venue where Brian Maurer and the Tennessee Volunteers will play the Indiana Hoosiers in the Gator Bowl on Thursday, January 2, 2020. The spread on this contest has Indiana as 1.5-point favorites. The Hoosiers are 7-5-0 ATS and 7-5-0 when betting on the total. The Volunteers are 4-8-0 when wagering on the over/under and 7-5-0 against the spread.

The last time they took the field, the Indiana Hoosiers took on the Purdue Boilermakers and won 44-41. Sampson James led the team on the ground for that game. His longest run of the day went for 30 yards and he tallied 1 touchdown during the game. He ran for 118 yards via 22 carries which means he ran for an average of 5.4 yards per run. Whop Philyor led the team in receiving yardage by earning 138 yards on 8 catches. He averaged 17.3 yards per catch for that game. Leading the way at QB for the Hoosiers was Peyton Ramsey who went 23/39 with 337 yards passing and threw 3 touchdowns. He finished this contest without throwing a pick. The Hoosiers ended up running the ball 50 times and racked up 185 yards which had them averaging 3.7 yards per rushing attempt. In the game, the Hoosiers earned 27 first downs and they had a total of 9 penalties for 84 yards which shows us how undisciplined this team can be. On the day, they totaled 89 plays which added up to 522 yards. When discussing the defense, Indiana allowed 28 catches on 50 attempts totaling 408 yards, and a completion percentage of 56.0%. Against the run, the Hoosiers allowed 181 yards on 33 tries which gave them an average of 5.5 yards per attempt allowed. For this contest, they conceded a total of 589 yards and earned 2 turnovers.

The Hoosiers head into this matchup 8-4 for this season. They are one of top scoring teams in the nation with an average of 32.6 points per game, ranking them 41st in D-1. As a unit, they have an average of 135.3 yards on the ground per contest which is 11th in the conference. For total yardage, they currently sit at 3rd in the conference and 37th in D-1 with 5,328 yards. The Hoosiers have one of the average defenses in the nation, giving up 24.5 points per contest ranking them 9th in the conference. In regard to yards on the ground, Indiana is giving up 139 yards per contest putting them 9th in the conference and 44th in college football. They are allowing teams to run for an average of 3.9 yards per rush putting them 9th in the Big Ten Conference and 46th in the country overall. Overall, they have allowed 1,668 yards rushing through 12 games. When it comes to yards through the air, the Hoosiers have conceded 3,704 yards. Opponents are completing 55.6% of the passes they throw against them and averaging 7.1 yards per attempt.

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The last time they took the field, the Tennessee Volunteers played the Vanderbilt Commodores and earned the victory by a score of 28-10. Eric Gray led the team in rushing for that game. He broke a long run for 94 yards and he tallied 3 touchdowns for the game. He rushed for 246 yards on 25 carries which meant he was running for 9.8 yards per carry. Jauan Jennings was the receiving yardage leader with a tally of 56 yards on 2 receptions. He notched an average of 28.0 yards per catch for that game. Running the show from under center for the Volunteers was Jarrett Guarantano who went 6/17 with 120 yards passing and threw 1 touchdown. He tossed 1 interception on the day. The Volunteers ran the football 41 times and earned a total of 297 yards earning them an average of 7.2 yards per run. Overall, they ran 58 plays which gave them a total of 417 yards. For the contest, the Volunteers racked up 16 first downs and they totaled 9 penalties for 66 yards telling us that this team was extremely undisciplined. In terms of defense, Tennessee gave up 17 completions on 36 tries totaling 169 yards, and a completion percentage of 47.2%. For this contest, they conceded a total of 279 yards but didn't get any takeaways. In the running game, the Volunteers gave up 110 yards on 30 attempts which means they had an average of 3.7 yards per attempt allowed.

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The Volunteers come into this matchup with a record of 7-5. Tennessee needs to do more to make teams respect their running game by averaging 145 yards on the ground per game, ranking them 88th in the nation. As a unit, they have compiled a total of 1,740 rushing yards through 12 games, so they are going to want to make some changes to the ground game if they want to make teams respect them. The Volunteers average 365 yards per contest overall ranking them 100th in the country and 12th in the Southeastern Conference. The Volunteers are conceding 21.7 points per game ranking them 8th in the SEC and 30th in Division 1. When talking about points given up, they have given up 260 total points. When talking about yards rushing, they are allowing 145.8 yards per contest which puts them at 55th in the country and 9th in the conference. For 2019, they have allowed 1,750 yards on the ground and 15.6 rushing touchdowns. Their passing defense is one of the best units in D-1. They are giving up 191.3 passing yards per contest. For yards through the air allowed per game, the Volunteers currently sit at 4th in the SEC.

Who will win tonight's Hoosiers/Volunteers college football game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take the Hoosiers -1.5

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