KNOXVILLE – Tennessee defensive back Baylen Buchanan made it very clear how much he wants to beat Vanderbilt when talking to reporters this past Monday. He mentioned on no fewer than three occasions that “I haven’t beat them since I got here.”
“It’s very important to me – to us – that we win this week,” Buchanan said a few times.
A series the Volunteers have dominated historically has taken a turn in the Commodores’ favor in recent seasons, and Saturday’s 4 p.m. EST game between the 5-6 teams in Nashville will have a winner-take-all feel to it, as the victor earns a bowl bid.
Vanderbilt has won the past two meetings and four of the past six.
“My impression coming here was that Tennessee beats Vanderbilt,” Buchanan said. “I was not expecting to lose two years in a row, so it’s very important to us that we win this week.”