After falling victim to a shocking upset, Kent State hopes to see a sign of life at Rocky Top.
Game notes
- Time and date: Saturday, September 14 at 7:45 p.m. ET
- Network: SEC Network
- Location: Neyland Stadium — Knoxville, TN
- Spread: Tennesse (-49)
- Over/under: 62.5
- All-time series: No previous matchups
Setting the scene
It’s not going to get any easier for Kent State.
Kent State, which finished the 2023 campaign as the only 1-11 FBS team, hoped the 2024 season would be one of growth and rebounding. However, the Golden Flashes squandered their easiest chance of victory in Week 2.
Since the start of 2023, their only victory was their matchup vs. Central Connecticut of the FCS when they breezed to a 38-10 win. Although that was the expectation when hosting FCS opponent St. Francis (PA), that was far from the result. St. Francis (PA), which finished 4-6 last season and started 0-1 in FCS play, recorded its first-ever FBS win, knocking off Kent State 23-17. And the scoreboard might be generous when depicting the separation as the Golden Flashes trailed 17-0 in the middle of the second quarter.
After a blown opportunity, the schedule significantly ramps up in difficulty. Kent State must travel to No. 7 Tennessee for a night game at Neyland Stadium. How do Kenni Burns and the Golden Flashes respond to the early season adversity in a hostile environment? That question will be answered Saturday night.
Kent State Golden Flashes outlook
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Kent State suffered an FBS-worst 1-11 season in 2023, but the Golden Flashes hit a nadir in 2024 that the prior year team avoided — dropping a matchup to FCS competition. Kent State saw its latest FCS defeat in 2016, but the Golden Flashes still managed three wins on the year.
In rare occasions, such as 2022 Buffalo or 2022 Bowling Green, teams can rebound to point of attaining bowl eligibility after dropping home games to the lower division. Kent State will take it one game at a time, but the schedule does not do any favors. The Golden Flashes must take road trips to top 10 programs Tennessee and Penn State in the next two weeks after finding themselves down three scores in the first half to St. Francis (PA).
Prior to the Week 2 debacle, it seemed like Kent State was on a good track, at least on the offensive side of the ball. After fielding the worst FBS scoring offense in 2023, the Golden Flashes posted 24 points on the Panthers to suggest marked improvement (although seven points stemmed from a special teams play).
Against St. Francis (PA), the Golden Flashes struggled to generate a run game. They’re already shorthanded in that department with starting running back Gavin Garcia out for the year, but the offensive line couldn’t assert any dominance vs. the FCS team. Kent State allowed seven tackles for loss to St. Francis (PA), one week after yielding five sacks and 12 tackles for loss to an overwhelming Pitt defense. Currently, nobody on the Golden Flashes is averaging more than Curtis Douglas’ 3.3 yards per carry, and he’s the only one registering at least three yards per attempt.
Elsewhere on the offense, Kent State continues to operate under quarterback Devin Kargman. Kargman was selected as the starter over Tommy Ulatowski in a fall camp battle, and so far, he’s been required to pass quite often. He leads the MAC with 66 passing attempts, completing 36 for 374 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions. Given the run game’s struggles and Kent State’s receiver room, relying heavily on the passing game appears to be the optimal strategy. The Golden Flashes are equipped with an All-MAC wide receiver duo of Chrishon McCray and Luke Floriea. While McCray was the premier target last season and he’s thriving with 96 receiving yards and two touchdowns, it’s been Floriea witnessing the highest usage in 2024. Floriea ranks first on the unit with 12 receptions and 196 receiving yards, matching McCray with two touchdowns of his own.
Defensively, Kent State struggled in Week 1 by allowing 55 points to Pitt and a slew of explosive plays. But there have been areas of promise with the pass rush showing strong development. Kent State produced four sacks at Pitt and two last week against St. Francis (PA), and defensive end Kameron Olds has emerged as a havoc inducer. The Buffalo transfer already has three sacks to his name, proving to be a valuable addition to a defensive end room featuring Stephen Daley, who has three tackles for loss, one sack, and a fumble recovery on the season.
But Kent State is 116th in run defense and 121st in pass defense, and the concerns against the run were particularly evident last Saturday as St. Francis (PA) eclipse 200 rushing yards, outplaying Kent State in that area. The Golden Flashes display a capable linebacking corps spearheaded by leading tackler Rocco Nicholl, so improvement can be had with better tackling and stronger gap integrity.
Tennessee Volunteers outlook
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Tennessee is cruising through its 2024 campaign so far, knocking off FCS opponent Chattanooga 69-3 in the opener and following it up with a 51-10 shellacking of NC State on the road. The Volunteers are many things. They’re fast, they’re physical, and they’ve dominated both sides of the ball to an absurd degree. Now the hopeful SEC contender hopes the lopsided results remain as Kent State pays its first-ever visit to Knoxville.
How dominant have the Volunteers been thus far? Offensively, they’re second in points per game and fifth in yards produced. Defensively, they are sixth in fewest yards allowed and 10th in fewest points allowed.
Everything starts in the trenches. Tennessee has exhibited some of the best offensive tackle play in college football with Lance Heard and John Campbell Jr. pummeling through opponents as run blockers and keeping quarterback Nico Iamaleava unscathed in the passing game. They’ve paved the way for Dylan Sampson to rank among the nation’s elite running backs, and the junior checks in at ninth in the FBS with 256 rushing yards — producing 120+ in each outing despite getting breathers in the fourth quarter due to the lopsided nature of the games. DeSean Bishop is thriving as a second fiddle as well, and overall, Tennessee boasts the nation’s 12th best rushing attack.
Under head coach Josh Heupel, the Volunteers inject a significant amount of tempo in its offense, often snapping the ball before opposing defenses are prepared. Kent State dealt with plenty of tempo Week 1 against Pitt and last year vs. UCF in the opener, so this shouldn’t be an unfamiliar concept. But Tennessee features so many dynamic playmakers in the offense which makes its hyper-speed offense a mammoth to stop. Iamaleava is completing 74.5 percent of passes with 525 yards, five touchdowns, and two interceptions on the year. His receiving corps runs incredibly deep, led by last year’s team receiving leader Squirrel White, but supported by Dont’e Thornton, Bru McCoy, and Chris Brazzell II.
Defensively, it’s the same story as the offense in terms of assertiveness at the line of scrimmage. Tennessee’s front is winning all of its battles early on this season with stellar defensive line play. The Volunteers have 18 tackles for loss already, permit just 56.5 rushing yards per game (11th in FBS), and we haven’t even seen future NFL defensive end James Pearce Jr. (10 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss in 2023) scratch the surface of his capabilities. The large margin of separation between the Volunteers and opponents has permitted them to utilize the entire depth chart, so the defensive success has been a concerted effort thus far. Nobody on the team is responsible for more than six tackles or one sack. It’s not like Tennessee has been overly reliant on turnovers either, as free safety Will Brooks’ 85-yard pick-six in the first half at NC State is the only interception the Volunteers have corralled all season.
Prediction
It’s a 49-point spread, so if Kent State wins, by the Vegas definition this can be classified as the greatest FBS over FBS upset in college football history.
These teams have been polar opposites thus far, as Tennessee is dominant on both sides of the ball with convincing wins — including an impressive 41-point road victory at NC State — while Kent State is still a work in progress, reeling in from a stunning defeat to an FCS program.
The next two weeks are going to be difficult for Kent State, and it’s important to come out healthy and with valuable experience that can pay off when MAC play commences.
Prediction: Tennessee 56, Kent State 3