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Pitt Opens as 5-Point Underdog at Home Against Tennessee

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The new AP Poll will be released Monday afternoon, and there’s a good chance that Pitt’s home matchup against Tennessee will be a battle of two ranked teams.

While Pitt will host Tennessee at Acrisure Stadium, as the higher ranked team in the AP Poll, Pitt has opened as an underdog against the Volunteers. Pitt is a 5-point underdog against Tennessee, according to Circa Sports, and the over/under has been set at a robust 69.5 points.

DraftKings Sportsbook has Pitt as 6-point underdogs, and the over/under has been set at 65 points. The betting odds regarding the spread and the over/under are set at -110, and the Money line cannot be bet upon yet.

FanDuel Sportsbook is slightly higher on Pitt, setting Pitt as 5.5-point underdogs, with both bets against the spread holding -110 odds. The over/under has been set at 64.5 points, with both options holding -110 odds. Pitt holds +188 odds against the Money line.

Tennessee is coming off a 59-10 season-opening win against Ball State, in which Hendon Hooker racked up 233 total yards and four touchdowns. Following last season’s 7-6 schedule, the Vols are expected to take a step forward this season.

Pitt and Tennessee have met three times before, with the most recent matchup coming last season. Kenny Pickett threw for 285 yards and scored a combined three touchdowns in a 41-34 win at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Pitt is 3-0 all-time against Tennessee. The previous matchups came back in 1980 (30-6 win) and 1983 (13-3 win).

Despite a 7-6 record, Tennessee only finished 5-8 against the spread last season. The Vols did hit the over 10 times last season on the back of Hooker’s strong offense.

Sandy Schall, Coldwell Banker
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TJ
TJ
1 year ago

Tennessee is better than last season. Obviously had an easier matchup in game 1 so it’s tough to project that performance out to this week. In any case, if Pitt doesn’t clean-up the run blocking and run defense, a 5-point spread will be way too low. I’m looking forward to being there and seeing a great game. H2P !

Sharon
Sharon
1 year ago
Reply to  TJ

The running problem is not the blocking, it’s the design of the running scheme. Cignetti is 25 years behind. He has never lasted anywhere because he sucks. He is not capable of designing a running game against modern defensive fronts.

Graham Harrel (a passing guy) has a better running scheme than us. Our defensive front was biting on his traps.

Tim
Tim
1 year ago
Reply to  Sharon

Modern defensive fronts? Coach Cignetti is able to “evolve” I’m certain. Boston College, his last employer, ran the ball down our neck just a few years ago under his leadership. Maybe our O line, despite its experience is a little overrated. The Cignetti name is respected at all levels of football.

Robert E Landel
Robert E Landel
1 year ago
Reply to  Tim

O line may be a bit overrated, true. They don’t block well, as hoped, for Pitt’s runners. Obviously Slovis held the ball too long and is accountable for his sacks. This week, I worry about interceptions if he throws before ready. And of course, we need to throw more to open the run. Forgot to mention the poor play of the outside linebackers. Doesn’t look good.

Sharon
Sharon
1 year ago
Reply to  Tim

We do not have O-Line for a power blocking system. We have guys with good hand and foot work which is needed in pass protection but can also be effective in the right type of running attacks. The BC zone block scheme worked there because of personnel up front and a special powerful running back. That is not Pitt personnel. I don’t blame the players, I blame the OC. He has to adjust to the skill sets of his players. Why did he stay with the same zone block scheme he has always run? We could all see it was… Read more »

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