The Akron Zips (1-1, 0-0 MAC) will be trying to pick up their first road win of the season when they face the Tennessee Volunteers (2-0, 0-0 SEC) on Saturday night. The Zips are coming off a 52-0 loss to Michigan State as 34.5-point underdogs. The Volunteers are coming off a 34-27 win over Pittsburgh as 6-point favorites.
Tennessee won the lone meeting between the two teams 47-26 in 2012.
The Zips followed up their season-opening win over St. Francis with a blowout loss to Michigan State in their last game. They will try to bounce back from the loss with a win over the Volunteers, which will give them their second win in their last three games and likely knock the Volunteers out of the top 25.
Akron has struggled offensively, averaging 15 points per game through two games. They are throwing for 244.5 yards and rushing for 60 yards per game.
D J Irons completed 69 percent of his passes for 123 yards before leaving the game with an injury. He also had seven carries for 30 yards. Jeff Undercuffler Jr. completed 50 percent of his passes for 80 yards. Cam Wiley had 10 carries for 30 yards, while Daniel George had four catches for 44 yards.
Akron didn’t play well defensively in their first two games, giving up 37.5 points per game. They haven’t been able to stop the run and will need to figure out a way to do so if they want to pull off the upset.