KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Often, the winner of a bowl game boils down to which team wants to be there.
That might be why Alabama lost recent Sugar Bowl games to Oklahoma and Utah. It might be why Florida got blown out by Michigan in last season’s Citrus Bowl. It might be why Ole Miss got torched by TCU in the 2014 Peach Bowl.
That begs this question: Will Tennessee be fired up about playing in the Music City Bowl? The season began with expectations of winning the SEC East; even when that hope ended, a Sugar Bowl berth was a legitimate possibility.