Oklahoma at Tennessee in SEC showdown with playoff implications

No. 18 Oklahoma travels to Neyland Stadium on Saturday to face No. 14 Tennessee in a pivotal Southeastern Conference matchup that kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Eastern and will be televised on ABC. Both teams enter 6-2, with Tennessee favored narrowly, and each faces pressure to protect still-faint College Football Playoff hopes as the season approaches its stretch run.

Tennessee arrives on the back of a 56-34 victory over Kentucky, paced by quarterback Joey Aguilar, who leads the conference in passing yards per game and has helped the Volunteers produce an SEC-high average of more than 510 yards of total offense. Aguilar’s primary target, Chris Brazzell II, tops the conference in receiving yards and has eight touchdowns. The Volunteers also rank among the nation’s best in kickoff returns.

Oklahoma’s strength this season has been its defense, which has limited opponents to about 12 points per game. The Sooners are looking to rebound from a 34-26 loss to Ole Miss last week that dropped them to two defeats in their last three outings after a 5-0 start. Oklahoma will rely on quarterback John Mateer, who has been a dual threat at times this season, and on a defense that has been among the...