We simulated Tennessee football vs. Alabama. Who won the game, MVP honors in EA Sports?

Posted by Admin October 18, 2024 Football

It’s Week 8 of football in Tennessee! With the No. 10 Volunteers (5-1) hosting the No. 7 Crimson Tide (5-1) at Neyland Stadium this weekend, we ran through 100 video game simulations of the Third Saturday in October rivalry to see what the real outcome might be.

Anything can happen in college football. And so far this season, our EA Sports College Football 25 simulations on PS5 have resulted in some exciting − often accurate − possibilities.

Just to offer a little transparency, we took a break from running the simulations to focus our coverage on Hurricane Helene and the flooding in East Tennessee.

Now, we’ve returned to see how Tennessee will fare against rival Alabama in our EA Sports College Football 25 simulations on PS5.

This week’s game between Tennessee and Alabama takes place at 3:30 p.m. Oct. 19, a time that is available in the game. We set the weather to clear and sunny to match the weather forecast for Knoxville that was available at the time of simulating.

Here’s what EA Sports College Football 25 predicted across 100 simulations for Tennessee vs. Alabama.

Tennessee vs. Oklahoma: EA Sports College Football 25 results

In the second big rivalry game this season, the Volunteers won a measly 32 games out of 100.

The final score of UT’s wins were typically close, with only a couple outliers. The biggest UT win came in Game 3 with a final score of 45-17.

However, a majority of Alabama’s wins were by large margins, with the Crimson Tide securing its biggest win in Game 69 with a score of 47-10.

Nine games went to overtime. The Vols won four of the overtime matchups. Surprisingly, four of these games went into multiple overtimes. Game 84 ended with the Vols winning in six overtimes.

The Vols scored an average of 25.13 points per game, and the Crimson Tide scored an average of 31.55.

Tennessee average yards: 145.6 rushing, 204.64 passing and 458.93 total

Alabama average yards: 185.85 rushing, 215.85 passing yards and 501.88 total

Knox News reporter Mike Wilson predicts an Alabama victory of 28-24. Here’s what EA Sports College Football 25 predicts about the matchup.

Biggest UT win: 45-17
Biggest Alabama win: 47-10
Highest scoring game: 59-57, Alabama (overtime)
Lowest scoring game: 17-10, Alabama
Closest games: Three games were decided by one point. Tennessee won 31-30 in Game 29 and 21-20 in Game 38. Alabama won 17-16 in Game 96. Additionally, 22 games were decided by two or three points, with Tennessee winning 10 of those games.
Biggest surprise: This round of simulations saw the return of the constant two-point conversion attempts. Only in a few instances did it make sense, like in Game 83 when Tennessee got a two-point conversion that put the team up by seven, resulting in a 38-31 Vols victory.
Most impressive plays: Alabama running back Germie Bernard had two 90+ yard rushing touchdowns in Game 2. Tennessee wide receiver Squirrel White returned a kickoff for a 101 yard touchdown in Game 14, which was immediately followed by 75-yard Alabama passing touchdown from quarterback Jalen Milroe to wide receiver Kobe Prentice. Alabama defensive back Malachi Moore had a pick six in Game 39, and Tennessee safety Andre Turrentine recovered a fumble that led to a touchdown drive. In Game 86, UT running back Peyton Lewis returned a kickoff for a 99 yard touchdown. In Game 92, Alabama wide receiver Cole Adams ran back a kickoff for a 101 yard touchdown and later recovered a fumble.
Most Valuable Players: Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe took home the most MVP awards with 55. Tennessee players with at least one MVP: Quarterback Nico Iamaleava, wide receiver Squirrel White, running back Dylan Sampson, cornerback Ricky Gibson III, quarterback Gaston Moore, running back DeSean Bishop, running back Peyton Lewis and wide receiver Chris Brazzell II. Alabama players with at least one MVP: Wide receiver Germie Bernard, running back Daniel Hill, wide receiver Kobe Prentice and running back Jam Miller.

Another interesting observation from EA Sports College Football 25

When setting to the video game to a big rivalry, the color commentary team and on-screen graphics provide information specific to the matchup. At the start and at the end of each simulation, EA Sports College Football 25 showed how many times the Third Saturday in October has been played, the overall rivalry record and specific statistics related to the Tennessee-Alabama rivalry.

It was a nice addition to set the stage for this Saturday’s game in Knoxville.

Keenan Thomas is a higher education reporter. Email keenan.thomas@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter @specialk2real.

Support strong local journalism by subscribing to subscribe.knoxnews.com.