Tennessee football will beat Oklahoma by at least 20 points and other overreactions

Tennessee football set offensive records in a rout against Kent State on Saturday, setting up a major showdown in its SEC opener.

The No. 9 Vols (3-0) beat winless Kent State 71-0 at Neyland Stadium, scoring the most points in a game in the modern era among many records.

Here are overreactions from the win:

The Vols will beat Oklahoma by at least 20

Tennessee might not score 50 points for the fourth straight game. But it will still beat Oklahoma by at least 20 when it goes to Norman, Oklahoma, for the SEC opener.

No. 14 Oklahoma is 3-0 but has not been inspiring. The Sooners beat Tulane 34-19 on Saturday after struggling against Houston a week earlier in a 16-12 win.

UT’s offense is crushing teams, while its defense has yet to allow a touchdown through three games. That is a wicked combination that’ll lead to a rout at Oklahoma.

Mike Matthews is going to start for Tennessee this season

Mike Matthews made his Tennessee debut and he was sensational. The five-star freshman wide receiver reeled in a leaping touchdown catch in the second quarter for his first career score.

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He had two catches for 35 yards, including the 18-yard touchdown. Matthews battled an injury early in preseason practices, which limited his start to the season. But coach Josh Heupel made a telling comment about Matthews when he said the Vols were able to roll out an offensive set with four wide receivers now that Matthews was healthy. That bodes well for his playing time.

Tennessee has a deep wide receiver group, which has been talking about plenty throughout the past two months. Matthews could break into it in a major way as the season unfolds, especially in the slot where Tennessee isn’t as deep as it is on the outside.

Tennessee football will break program record for points in a season

Tennessee set a long list of offensive records against Kent State (0-3). It put another one in its sights: the single-season scoring record.

The Vols have scored 191 points through three games. The season record for scoring is 599, which it set in 2022.

If Tennessee plays 10 more games this season, it would need to average 40.8 points per game through the remainder of the regular season and a postseason game to set the record. UT is averaging 63.7.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.