No. 14 Tennessee will host No. 19 Florida on Saturday in the two teams' annual rivalry game with the Vols looking to snap an 11-game losing streak to the Gators.

Tennessee is a 6.5-point favorite over Florida in the SEC on CBS Game of the Week.

Viewing information

Date: Saturday, Sept. 24
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: Knoxville, Tennessee

TV: CBS
Live stream (computer): CBSSports.com (Simulcast and All-22 feed)
Live stream (mobile): Download the CBS Sports App

Storylines

Tennessee: Injuries on defense are certainly a major concern for the Vols, most notably losing star cornerback Cam Sutton to a broken ankle, but I want to see if the Tennessee offense can finally get off the ground. The Vols scored 45 points on Virginia Tech, but 24 of those points came off of Virginia Tech fumbles that started the offense in plus territory -- the Vols had three scoring drives that the offense went less than 10 yards.

Against Ohio, there were no turnovers forced by the defense and the Tennessee offense once again looked extremely average against a MAC defense scoring by only 28 points. The Vols also continue to have insane fumble luck, recovering two of their own fumbles against Appalachian State late, including on the game-winning score. They got five fumbles from Virginia Tech and on Saturday the Vols fumbled five times and recovered all of them.

There are two questions for the Tennessee offense to answer this week. Can the Vols be tighter with the ball or will the fumble luck run out against a good Florida defense? Will the passing game be enough of a consistent threat to keep Florida from loading up on the run? If the answers are no, there will be a danger of this losing streak slipping to 12 games.

Florida: Can Austin Appleby give the Gators a passing attack? Luke Del Rio had settled in a bit since a rough opener -- admittedly against poor defenses -- but his injury turns things over to the Purdue grad transfer. Appleby wasn't asked to do much late in the North Texas game, throwing only four passes, but one would expect Tennessee to load up the box and force him to consistently throw the ball.

This was the question for Florida in this game last year and Will Grier pulled a 283-yard passing performance out of seemingly nowhere -- he hadn't thrown for more than 166 yards in the first three games. Appleby might not need that big a performance, but for the Gators to have a chance there has to be at least the threat of a balanced attack.

Players to Watch

Josh Malone, WR, Tennessee: If Joshua Dobbs and the passing game are going to get going then Malone is likely going to be the target to make it happen. Malone is averaging over 21 yards per reception this season with four touchdowns on nine catches. He'll have his hands full getting separation from a very good Florida secondary led by Teez Tabor, but a big play or two from Malone would be big for a Tennessee offense that otherwise lacks explosiveness.

Jarrad Davis, LB, Florida: Tennessee wants to run the ball and if they have success on the ground it's going to spell trouble for Florida. Davis is the Gators' leading tackler from his middle linebacker position and he's going to have a lot of opportunities against the Vols to fill gaps and bring down the ball-carrier for negligible gains. If the defensive line can keep his nose clean and let him fly around in pursuit and have a big day, the Gators can force Tennessee into passing downs.

Matchup to watch

Florida defensive line vs. Tennessee offensive line: Butch Jones insists that we in the media are talking too much about Tennessee's offensive line issues and blowing them out of proportion. Well, here's the Vols chance to shut everyone up against a very good defensive front.

Tennessee wants to run the ball, but if the offensive line isn't getting push up front and able to move second level and put hats on linebackers then the best efforts of Jalen Hurd and Alvin Kamara are going to be short gains. Florida's run defense is stout and if things go like they did against Appalachian State's front seven for the offensive line, it's going to be tough sledding for Tennessee's offense as a whole.

The line needs to show improvement for Tennessee and there would be no time better than this week to show out and help the Vols snap their losing streak to the Gators.