Northwestern vs. Tennessee: Outback Bowl Live Stream, TV Info, Game Notes

Everything you need to know about the Northwestern vs. Tennessee Outback Bowl live stream and TV broadcast, as well as game notes and prediction.

The No. 13 Northwestern Wildcats will battle the No. 23 Tennessee Volunteers in Tampa on New Year’s Day in the Outback Bowl.

The Wildcats (10-2, 6-2 Big Ten) are appearing in their first bowl game since 2012 and their 12th overall. Northwestern was a pleasant surprise of the 2015 college football season and rebounded from back-to-back losses by winning its final five games. Last time out, the Wildcats downed rival Illinois, 24-14, to earn its fourth 10-win season in program history. Northwestern took a 21-7 lead into the halftime and staved off the Illini in the second half to capture the victory. The Wildcats offense was run through Justin Jackson who carried the ball 37 times for 172 yards and a touchdown. With Jackson carrying most of the load, it took a lot of pressure off Clayton Thorson who passed for 146 yards and a touchdown. Head coach Pat Fitzgerald has been a part of 10 of Northwestern’s 12 postseason appearances: six as a head coach, two as an assistant coach and two as a player.

The Volunteers (8-4, 5-3 SEC) are in their second consecutive bowl game after a three-year hiatus and 51st in program history. Tennessee had higher aspirations preseason, but managed to finish the 2015 regular season with five straight wins, including a 53-28 drubbing of Vanderbilt in its last game. The Vols never trailed in the game and after the Commodores closed the gap to 17-14 in the second quarter, Tennessee rattled off 36-unanswered points, cruising to victory. Joshua Dobbs led the Vols offense with 233 total yards and three touchdowns. Jalen Hurd (19 car, 120 yards, TD) joined Dobbs in a backfield that ran for 331 yards and combined for three touchdowns on the afternoon. Tennessee will look to continue its postseason success against the Big Ten as the Vols took down Iowa, 45-28, in the TaxSlayer Bowl last year.

The 2015 Outback Bowl will mark just the second meeting all-time between Northwestern and Tennessee. The Vols took the only other matchup, 48-28, in the 1997 Florida Citrus Bowl.

Below is everything you need to know about the matchup, including the Outback Bowl live stream, TV broadcast information, game notes and prediction.

Outback Bowl Live Stream, TV Broadcast Information

Venue: Raymond James Stadium
Date: Friday, January 1
Kickoff Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
National TV: ESPN 2
Outback Bowl Live Stream: Watch ESPN, No Radio Stream Available

Prediction

Can Tennessee show up with the right attitude and the right focus? If it treats this game like Alabama, it’s going to roll past the try-hard Wildcats that don’t have the offense to keep up any sort of pace. It’s all about the first quarter – if Northwestern gets out fine, this is going to be a war. If Tennessee is up by two scores, it might be okay to go do something else with your day. However, the Outback has consistently been among the best of the New Year’s bowls with the last four and four of the last five decided by seven points or fewer, and the one aberration – the 2011 Florida 37-24 win over Penn State – was a battle until late. This one might not be quite as close – the Vols will show why there was so much hype.

For the final score prediction, check out our Outback Bowl preview.

Game Notes

Anthony Walker leads the Wildcats with 113 tackles while ranking second in the country with 19.5 tackles for loss. He has posted six double-digit tackling efforts this season and has the third most tackles for loss in a single season in NU history.
All-SEC running back Jalen Hurd is the first sophomore to gain 2,000 career yards in Tennessee history. With 1,158 yards this year, he is the 18th 1000-yard rusher at UT.
Since becoming the head coach in 2006, Northwestern’s Pat Fitzgerald claims a 33-7 record against non-Big Ten opponents in the regular season.