Alabama is looking to avoid back-to-back regular-season losses for the first time since 2007.

Tennessee football is the team standing in the way of that. The Vols and Crimson Tide face off on the Third Saturday in October at Neyland Stadium at 3:30 p.m. Recent history favors the home team in the series — the last five games have been won by the school playing at home.

But Alabama is fresh off a loss to No. 1 Georgia. And Tennessee still doesn’t have stability at quarterback.

“I’ve told the team, you can’t let Georgia beat us twice,” Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said Monday. “What I mean by that is, you got to pick up. You can’t be feeling sorry for yourself or anything like that.”

Explosive plays could determine Saturday's matchup. Alabama has built one of the country's most productive offenses by pushing the ball downfield, while Tennessee has excelled at limiting big plays.

Star quarterback Keelon Russell has guided Alabama to the No. 1 scoring offense in the country at 44.2 points per game. He’s done it by pushing the ball down the field. Alabama has completed 38 passing plays of 20-plus yards this season. Russell doesn’t often utilize the checkdown, either, ranking ninth nationally with 9.87 yards per pass attempt. He’s averaging nearly 15 yards per completion, which is the best in the SEC.

Russell has 56 completions over 10 yards this season. The dual-threat quarterback has seven touchdowns of over 20 yards, with six coming through the air and another with his legs.

That’s enough of a task for Jim Knowles’ defense, ranking No. 19 nationally in scoring at 15.5 points per game. But his unit has found a way to limit the explosives this season.

Tennessee leads the SEC in allowing the fewest 20-plus- (8), 30-plus- (2) and 40-plus-yard (1) passing plays this season. They haven’t allowed a 50-plus-yard passing play this season.

Arch Manning’s opening-drive completion to Emmett Mosley V for 43 yards is the longest passing play Tennessee has allowed this season. The only play longer was a 57-yard scamper by Auburn quarterback Byrum Brown on a broken play.

Saturday will be another litmus test for Tennessee’s defensive unit. On the flipside, Tennessee’s offense will need to flip an explosive switch to stay in the game.

The Vols, still teetering on the quarterback conundrum, have lacked the explosiveness that Josh Heupel’s offenses are best known for. Three of Tennessee’s five longest plays of the season came against Furman, while the longest is a garbage-time 73-yard run by Justin Baker. The other two longest plays came against Arkansas last week, a 68-yard pass to DaSaahn Brame and a 59-yard rush by DeSean Bishop. Both plays were crucial to pulling away with a win against the Razorbacks.

Whether it is George MacIntyre taking snaps or Faizon Brandon returning from injury, the explosives will be a key to watch — and the Vols need to end the night with more produced than given up if they want to be lighting cigars by night’s end.

Source: Yahoo Sports