Tennessee 'Will Hang In A Lot Longer Than Expected' Against Georgia: CBS Sports' Brian Jones Previews Matchups
(CBS DFW) -- Just a few games remain in college football's regular season. And CBS and CBS Sports Network have another Saturday worth of action on tap. Still undefeated, top-ranked Georgia controls its destiny in the SEC East and faces high-flying Tennessee on the road. San Diego State and Nevada battle for control of the Mountain West. And Air Force and Colorado both look to end losing streaks. CBS's Norm Elrod talked to CBS Sports' Brian Jones about the matchups.
#1 Georgia @ Tennessee, Saturday, November 13, 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS
No opposing offense has scored more than 13 points on this Georgia defense. Can Tennessee be the first?
"I actually think they can. A lot of things are pointing in their favor. And one is they like to play fast. They score in something like a minute and 29 seconds. They don't have a huge chunk of time of possession, because they don't need it. But they score pretty quickly, and if you go back to last week's game versus Kentucky, they caught in Kentucky off guard. They weren't set on the defensive side of the ball, and Tennessee was able to exploit that. And I look for them to attempt to do the same to Georgia, as they've been doing all season long. So I think they're going to score more than 13 points, especially if they can catch them off guard, as they as they did last weekend. They have some playmakers. Velus Jones has been really outstanding here of late, and he's also a kick returner for them. The running backs, they run hard. They are small, very tough, physical backs and the type of backs you need to employ when playing in the SEC."
Georgia hasn't had a close game since its opener against Clemson. Even with their high-powered offense, will Tennessee challenge them?
"This is considered a rivalry game for both of these teams. And Tennessee is at home and coming off a big win versus Kentucky on the road. And the manner in which they played against Alabama, I thought that ball game -- and I know this is a long-winded way of answering your question -- but I thought they just didn't have the depth to hang with a team the caliber of Alabama. That may come into play in this one as well. Their defense that night versus Kentucky, that's a heck of a lot of time to be on the field. And they still got to W. I don't think it's going to be close. I'm going to say no. But I think they will hang in a lot longer than expected."
Nevada @ San Diego State, Saturday, November 13, 10:30 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network
San Diego State and Nevada are one-two in the Mountain West West. Both teams sit just outside the top 25 and are coming off of wins. How do you see this one playing out?
"Nevada, they hang your hat on chucking the ball, and they can chuck it with the with the best. So you have to stop Carson Strong, and apply some pressure to him. Whereas San Diego State, they want to pound you with the rock. They do a pretty good job of doing that. And so it's going to be a tale of two different styles. And I would go with the running style, because if San Diego State can keep Carson Strong and that offense on the sidelines and be in their run game and eat up the clock, they have a good chance of winning. So I'm going to lean the San Diego State way and say they get to victory over Nevada. This was a fabulous game a season ago, which San Diego State won. I think they can win it again."
Air Force @ Colorado State, Saturday, November 13, 7:00 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network
Air Force has dropped two in a row. Colorado State has lost three in a row. Which of these teams will turn it around this week?
"I'm going to go with Air Force. Close but great game against Army that we had on CBS last weekend. And I think they get that running game going. These service academies, when they play each other, you don't see the big numbers. They do what they do best, which is run the rock. And they both shut down each other's running game last week. And I think Haaziq Daniels and Brad Roberts will get rolling again with their running game. That's who they actually lean on is Roberts. He's one of the tops in the Mountain West. And Haaziq Daniels did show the ability to pass the ball, made some big plays late in that ballgame to get them in overtime. Of course, they just came up short. So I'm going to go with Air Force. I think they get their triple-option rolling again after running into one of their counterparts that knows how to stop that type of attack."