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Alabama at Tennessee by the numbers: Kalen DeBoer competes on the third Saturday in October


Alabama at Tennessee by the numbers: Kalen DeBoer competes on the third Saturday in October

No. 7 Alabama (5-1, 2-1) at No. 11 Tennessee (5-1, 2-1)

2:30 p.m. CDT Saturday (ABC)

Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee

1 Alabama's SEC-era coach won five of his first six games with the Crimson Tide – current coach Kalen DeBoer. DeBoer is the first first-year Alabama coach with a 5-1 record since Frank Thomas began his 15-year tenure with the Tide with a 9-1 mark in 1931, two seasons before the SEC's inaugural season. Red Drew in 1947, Ray Perkins in 1983, Bill Curry in 1987 and Nick Saban in 2007 were 4-2, Bear Bryant in 1958 was 3-2-1, Gene Stallings in 1990, Mike DuBose in 2007 1997 and Dennis Franchione in 2001 were 3-3, Mike Shula in 2003 was 2-4 and Ears Whitworth in 1955 was 0-6 after his first six games.

3 Teams rank in the top 10 nationally, including Tennessee, in offensive and defensive rating and in overall offensive and defensive rating. In average per game, the Volunteers are No. 9 in points scored, No. 4 in points allowed, No. 9 in yards gained and No. 2 in yards allowed. Texas is No. 7 in points scored, No. 1 in points allowed, No. 7 in yards gained and No. 1 in yards allowed. Ohio State is No. 6 in points scored, No. 5 in points allowed, No. 6 in yards gained and No. 5 in yards allowed.

4 Wins and six losses for Alabama coaches in their first game against Tennessee in the SEC era. Red Drew in 1947, Bill Curry in 1987, Gene Stallings in 1990 and Nick Saban in 2007 won against Tennessee in their first season with the Crimson Tide. Ears Whitworth in 1955, Bear Bryant in 1958, Ray Perkins in 1983, Mike DuBose in 1997, Dennis Franchione in 2001 and Mike Shula in 2003 lost to the Vols in their first season as Alabama's coach. Kalen DeBoer will lead the Tide for the first time against Tennessee on Saturday. DeBoer will be the second first-year Alabama coach to lead a ranked team against the Volunteers, the seventh in a row to face a ranked Tennessee team and the first to face the Vols in a ranked-versus-ranked game. On October 15, 1983, Perkins' No. 11 Tide lost to unranked Tennessee 41-34. Since then, the Volunteers have been listed for every meeting with a first-year Alabama coach, with Curry defeating No. 8 Tennessee 41-22 in 1987, Stallings defeating No. 3 Tennessee 9-6 in 1990 and Saban defeating No. 20 Tennessee 41- 17 in 2007.

6 Consecutive games with at least one rushing touchdown for Tennessee RB Dylan Sampson, who scored three touchdowns in the Volunteers' 23-17 overtime win over Florida on Oct. 12. Sampson is the first Tennessee player with a rushing TD in six consecutive games since Montario Hardesty in 2009. Sampson has scored 15 TDs in 2024, the most by a Tennessee player in a season since Tony Thompson scored 16 TDs in 1990 . The only other Volunteers with more rushing TDs in a season are Gene McEver with 18 in 1929 and Reggie Cobb with 17 in 1987.

7 The starts were made by QB Nico Iamaleava for Tennessee. The Volunteers have a 6-1 record and have outscored their opponents 288-64 in Iamaleava starts. He wants to become the first true or redshirt quarterback to start in Tennessee's win over Alabama since Erik Ainge in 2004.

11 Rushing TDs by Alabama's Jalen Milroe in 2024, two fewer than the school single-season record for a quarterback set by Jalen Hurts with 13 in 2016. Milroe has 24 rushing TDs during his career at Alabama, one more than Hurts had during his time with the Crimson Tide.

12 On October 19, games were played between Alabama and Tennessee. Each team won six.

RELATED: SEC TOP 10 FROM WEEK 7

13 Wins in 15 games against teams ranked in Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer's AP Poll. Among active NCAA FBS coaches, DeBoer ranks second in wins over ranked opponents behind 17th-ranked Kirby Smart of Georgia. Third on the list is Tennessee's Josh Heupel with 10 wins over ranked opponents.

19 Points are the most scored in the Volunteers' last seven games against Tennessee. It is the longest game in which Tennessee's opponents have not reached 20 points since 1998, which lasted seven games and included a 35:18 win over Alabama. Tennessee has not held more than seven consecutive opponents to fewer than 20 points since the final nine games of the 1985 season. Alabama has scored at least 20 points in 17 consecutive games and has scored at least 34 points in each of its last eight games against Tennessee.

25 Yards per reception this season were averaged by Alabama WR Ryan Williams, the nation's top player with at least 11 receptions. Williams has 23 receptions for 576 yards and six touchdowns. He has more receiving spots than any other rookie in the country.

30 Wins and a loss for Tennessee under coach Josh Heupel when the Volunteers lead at halftime. The only loss occurred on October 21, 2023, in a 34-20 setback against Alabama, which led Tennessee 20-7 at halftime. Tennessee has outscored its opponents 149-12 in the first half this season.

42 The scoring average this season was achieved by Alabama and Tennessee. The Volunteers have scored 253 points and the Crimson Tide have scored 250 points in six games each. Alabama has exactly twice as many points as its opponents this season. Tennessee is just one field goal away from having four times as many points as its opponents this season.

107 Alabama-Tennessee football games when they begin Saturday. The Crimson Tide lead the series 60-38-8 on the field. With the exception of the 1943 season, the teams have competed against each other annually since 1928. Alabama leads the series at 13-9-1 when both teams are ranked, which is the case this season.

140 Responsible for Alabama's points was QB Jalen Milroe, whose average in charge of 23.3 points per game this season is the second-highest in the country. Milroe has 12 touchdown passes, 11 touchdown runs and a 2-point conversion pass. Miami (Fla.) QB Cameron Ward has 20 TD passes, three TD runs and two 2-point conversion passes for 142 points, a 23.7 average.

316 Games have been played by Alabama since it was last shut down. Alabama's scoring streak is the third longest in SEC history. Alabama's last shutout loss came on November 18, 2000, 9-0 against Auburn.

699 Rushing yards for Tennessee RB Dylan Sampson this season, the most in the SEC. Sampson averaged 5.9 yards rushing and scored 15 touchdowns on 118 carries. Alabama's 2024 rushing leader, RB Jam Miller, has 360 yards and five touchdowns on 51 carries.

1,350 Play for Tennessee when the Volunteers face Alabama on Saturday. Tennessee has a field record of 881-415-53. Eight percent of the Vols' games have come against Alabama, and the Crimson Tide is responsible for 14 percent of Tennessee's losses.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.

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