Tennessee and Kentucky football hasn’t done enough to close the gap, according to the SEC oddsmakers.
Neither Tennessee football nor Kentucky football will be playing in Atlanta this December.
According to SportsBetting.ag, the Tennessee Volunteers and the Kentucky Wildcats come in tied for the third-best odds to win the SEC East respectively this season. They are looking up at the divisional favorite Georgia Bulldogs and the fellow College Football Playoff-contending Florida Gators in the SEC East race. Which of these teams is better slated to prove us wrong this season?
The winner between Tennessee and Kentucky will finish in third place.
It may not happen this year, but we have to respect the jobs Mark Stoops and Jeremy Pruitt have done at their respective programs. Have we seen the Kentucky football program this consistently viable ever? Hats off to Stoops for giving Big Blue Nation something to be proud of. Entering year three, Pruitt might be the man to bring Rocky Top back to the promised land…eventually.
2020 SEC East division title odds
- Georgia Bulldogs: -140
- Florida Gators: +105
- Kentucky Wildcats: +1400
- Tennessee Volunteers: +1400
- Missouri Tigers: +2500
- South Carolina Gamecocks: +2500
- Vanderbilt Commodores: +5000
As expected, Georgia has the best odds to win the SEC East at -140. Florida comes in a close second at +105. Then a good ways back are Kentucky and Tennessee tied for the third-best odds at +1400. After that, the Missouri Tigers and the South Carolina Gamecocks are tied for the sixth-best odds at +2400. With no chance to win the division are the Vanderbilt Commodores at +5000.
Though the SEC West looks to be considerably more competitive with five of their teams have +1800 odds or better to win the division, it doesn’t seem like Kentucky or Tennessee have any realistic shot of getting to Atlanta out of the division this year. Both rival teams have to play playoff-contending teams like Alabama, Florida and Georgia, and it’s not going to go well.
In fact, the best way to ensure a 7-3 or 6-4 record is to win the annual rivalry game between the Vols and the ‘Cats. With this one being in Knoxville this year, Tennessee seems to have the advantage here. However, the odds suggest the gap between No. 3 and No. 4 in the SEC East is non-existent. Perhaps Kentucky can steal a high-stakes rivalry game on the road this year?
Though Kentucky and Tennessee can have good seasons, they aren’t on Florida or Georgia’s level.
For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.