The marquee game on the Week 4 college football schedule finds a pair of ranked conference rivals playing a new-look league game brought to us by realignment, as Tennessee visits Oklahoma in the Sooners’ SEC debut. Here’s what you need to know, along with our updated game prediction.

Let’s call this the Josh Heupel Bowl, as the former Oklahoma quarterback returns to Norman as Tennessee’s head coach in a matchup of SEC contenders looking to avoid their first loss of the season.

Big Orange has pulverized everything in its path through 3 games, outscoring its overmatched opponents 191 to 13, ranking 1st nationally with almost 64 points per game, placing 3rd in rushing and in scoring defense behind one of college football’s best front sevens.

Oklahoma won’t be quite that generous, but there is some concern for this team after it played closely against unranked opponents over the last two weeks.

The Sooners eked out a 16-12 victory against Houston, scoring just 2 second-half points, and led by 5 against Tulane in the fourth quarter last week before scoring 10 unanswered.

Brent Venables and Oklahoma need to use this game to show they belong in the SEC, especially with a much tougher schedule ahead, and Tennessee wants to show it can match up against quality competition after playing against some cupcakes early on.

Playing better on third down is of the utmost importance for the Sooners to play this close and keep the Volunteers’ offense off the field for any sustained period of time.

But that has proved a challenge so far: OU ranks just 109th nationally in third down offensive production, converting only 13 of 42 attempts for a 31 percent average. 

Tennessee ranks 2nd nationally in third down defense, allowing only 6 conversions against 38 attempts, a stifling 15.8 percent success rate.

But the Sooners have the skill threats to boost that average, led by quarterback Jackson Arnold, who has thrown for 484 yards and 7 touchdowns and leads the team with 159 rushing yards and 2 additional scores. 

Tennessee presents a formidable challenge in its defensive front, boasting a cadre of pass rushers who have the speed, size, and agility to consistently damage an Oklahoma offensive line that has struggled to incorporate its new rotation so far this season.

That front will also frustrate a Sooner ground game that is averaging a very average 4.34 yards per carry, but has a potential star in freshman back Taylor Tatum, who should see his carries increase this week as OU tries to stabilize its offense and eat some clock.

Nico Iamaleava has played up to expectations in his limited exposure as Tennessee’s starting quarterback, going 4-0 overall and throwing for 698 yards with 6 TDs this season.

Vols back Dylan Sampson has balanced the offense out, rushing for 357 yards and 9 touchdowns already, averaging almost 8 yards per carry through 3 games.

Oklahoma’s defense has taken important steps forward in the last season-plus and comes into this game leading the nation with 10 takeaways, and linebacker Danny Stutsman’s 18 run stops are the most among any player in the country.

And the Sooners’ pass rush has looked efficient thus far, forcing opponents into a slew of mistakes when trying to throw the ball, and could bother the Vols’ good protection unit enough to force Iamaleava into some hurried throws and out of his rhythm.

Lines are courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Tennessee: -6.5 (-118)
Oklahoma: +6.5 (-104)

Over 56.5 points: -115
Under 56.5 points: -105

Nico Iamaleava has not played in a true road game for the Vols yet, and his inexperience could show early on as he works against not just OU’s pass rush, but the loud Sooner faithful under the lights.

But games like this in the SEC are won and lost at the line of scrimmage, and on paper Tennessee still clearly owns that advantage, pitting a strong front seven against a very suspect OU line.

Oklahoma has struggled to generate offensive consistency and put up points when it has the opportunity, and the Volunteers have the bodies to make that a problem again.

Both these defenses are playing good football at the moment, which could bring down the eventual total, but Tennessee’s combination of strangling the Sooners at the line, having the superior ground game, and more weapons to test the deeper field will be the difference.

College Football HQ picks …

More … Tennessee vs. Oklahoma score prediction from expert model

When: Sat., Sept. 21
Time: 6:30 p.m. Central
TV: ABC network

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Tennessee vs. Oklahoma Preview & Prediction

A pair of Top-15 teams will open league play against one another in the Southeastern Conference when No. 6 Tennessee heads out to play No. 15 Oklahoma on Saturday.

As we get closer to kickoff in Norman this weekend, we have a better idea of who’s going to be in, out, or undetermined yet for the Volunteers and the Sooners. This comes after 18 players, seven for the road team and 11 for the home squad, made the release of the injury report on Wednesday.

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With that, here’s the latest on the availabilities for UT and OU:

Full Oklahoma-Tennessee Thursday injury report

Oklahoma

Tennessee

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Tennessee comes in as one of the hottest teams in the country to open the year. They’re 3-0 where they’ve won by a total score of 191-13 for an average of 63.7 points per game scored while allowing only 4.3 points. This will be their toughest competition yet, though, with it being their first true road game against a fellow highly-rated conference opponent.

As for Oklahoma, this is their first-ever game in the league with it being their debut to the SEC. They’re playing it after their own 3-0 start where they’ve won by an average of 22.3 points per victory. Still, they’ve also had their questions over the past two weeks after having to win close ones over Houston and Tulane.

There are also the connections between the two head coaches and with OU. Josh Heupel returns after being a national title-winning quarterback for the Sooners in 2000. He also spent over a decade on staff in two stints, specifically working with their offense as a co-coordinator and quarterbacks coach. He will then be matching up against Brent Venables, who is in his third season as head coach at Oklahoma, who was on that staff with the program during Heupel’s career there as a player.

Tennessee vs. Oklahoma odds: Early point spread released, How to Watch

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Channel: ABC/ESPN+, Fubo TV (Streaming)
Location: Norman, OK

Tennessee and Oklahoma are set for a much-anticipated showdown in the SEC. The odds are now in for it ahead of kickoff this weekend.

According to FanDuel, Tennessee opened up as a 6.5 point favorite in this one. The total was set at 47.5 points.

If you want to bet the moneyline, Tennessee was listed as the -225 favorite while Oklahoma is at +184.

Volquest answers your Tennessee football & recruiting questions in the Sept. 19 mailbag I Volunteers

No. 6 Tennessee and No. 15 Oklahoma both updated their availability reports Thursday night, after issuing the initial injury reports Wednesday night. The Vols (3-0) face the Sooners (3-0) Saturday at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, in a 7:30 Eastern Time start on ABC.

The availability reports, as mandated by the SEC, will be updated again Friday night and one final time 90 minutes before kickoff on Saturday.

The most notable name on Tennessee’s availability report is Lance Heard, the five-star LSU transfer and starting left tackle who missed last week’s 71-0 win over Kent State. Sophomore running back Cameron Seldon was not listed on the availability report, despite not being active the last two weeks.

Players listed as “probable” have a 75% chance to play, while players listed as “questionable” are uncertain with a 50% chance to play. “Doubtful” means a player is unlikely to play, with a 25% chance to play. Players listed as available have a 100% chance to play and will only be listed if they were on a previous availability report.

Tennessee Availability Report

Oklahoma Availability Report

A Closer Look: SEC Availability Reports

The SEC in August announced availability reports for football, basketball and baseball. For SEC football games, schools are required to submit availability reports three days before games and issue daily updates up until 90 minutes before game time. 

For basketball and baseball, reports will be issued the night before SEC games with an additional update on game day.

“This availability reporting policy is intended to reduce pressure from outside entities seeking participation information,” said SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, “and represents a commitment of our 16 institutions to provide enhanced transparency to support efforts to protect our student-athletes and the integrity of competition.”

Players will be listed as available, probable, questionable, doubtful or out for their next game. On game day the updates will include available, game-time decision or out. 

Schools of who fail to provide accurate and timely availability reports will be subject to penalties from $25,000, for first-time offenders, to $100,000 for “third and further” offenses in football. Men’s basketball, women’s basketball and baseball fines will be between $15,000 and $25,000.