Tennessee Faces Undefeated Mississippi State Saturday

No. 15 Tennessee (3-1, 0-1 SEC) travels to undefeated Mississippi State (4-0) on Saturday for a mid‑afternoon kickoff at 4:15 p.m. ET at Davis Wade Stadium. Tennessee has named Bennett Brady, Bryson Eason, Lance Heard and Jeremiah Telander as game captains and will wear orange jerseys and pants with white helmets while MSU stages a white‑out for its sold‑out first SEC home game that will still include a large contingent of Volunteers fans. Tennessee enters as the favorite despite MSU’s perfect record and the mentor‑pupil link between Josh Heupel and MSU coach Jeff Lebby; Mississippi State must eliminate giveaways, penalties and poor punts to blunt Tennessee’s red‑zone efficiency and explosive passing attack. The game features Tennessee’s relentless pass rush (15 sacks through four games) against MSU’s improved pass protection and a Mississippi State defense that includes 6-foot-4 cornerback Kelley Jones, who has a 14.3% catch rate (lowest in FBS) and a 90.7 grade.