Tennessee vs. South Carolina opening line released

Tennessee sits just 2-5, but the progress has been easy to see in recent weeks. The Volunteers put up a nice effort yesterday in Tuscaloosa, hanging within striking distance of the nation’s No. 1 team until the fourth quarter.

With a softer schedule finally here, it’s time for Tennessee to show some progress in the win column. That starts this week with a South Carolina team that’s also playing pretty well. The Gamecocks pulled the upset at Georgia last week and nearly did the same to Florida. The Gators pulled away late, but South Carolina is another team showing obvious progress.

With a trip to Knoxville on deck, the Gamecocks will enter as 4.5 point favorites.

Tennessee led South Carolina last year in the second half before blowing that lead late. Will Muschamp went on to beat the Volunteers once again — a game that ended up keeping Tennessee out of a bowl game. A year before that, Butch Jones came one snap away from beating Muschamp, but ultimately fell short.

The Volunteers now have another chance against Muschamp coming at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday afternoon.