The Tennessee-Vanderbilt football series is known for sameness, rather than suspense.

You know a couple of things could happen, and neither is good for Vanderbilt. If the Vols don't win this game big, they win it small.

UT has won 22 consecutive games against Vanderbilt. It has won by as many as 65 and by as few as two in that 22-game streak.

But this year feels different. I attribute that to an increase in pressure.

UT rarely feels pressure against the Commodores because it's rarely in danger of losing to them. Vanderbilt never feels pressure against the Vols because no one expects it to win.

But this year is different.

In a 4-5 season, UT's team is bad enough to lose to the Commodores. If it does, the fallout will be far-reaching.

It will extend to 1988.

Whenever something goes wrong with UT football, the 1988 team comes to mind. And it has come to mind often this season.

The 1988 team lost its first six games. It lost four games by double-digit margins. It finished 5-6.

But if this UT team loses one of its next two games, UT fans will forget about the 1988 team, just as they eventually forgot about the 1980 team that went 5-6. When they think "failure," they will think "2005."

How's that for pressure?

There's pressure on Vanderbilt, too. If the Commodores can't beat UT now, can they ever?

UT is lower than it has been since ... you know when. Vanderbilt has won more than three games for only the second time since 1994.

How many times will Vanderbilt face UT with a quarterback as good as Jay Cutler? How many times will it be averaging 83 more yards per game than UT? How many times will it be averaging more yards per game rushing?

And how many times will it have the chance to finish higher in the divisional or conference standings?

Vanderbilt last beat UT in 1982. That's also the last time it finished higher in the SEC standings. The Commodores could accomplish both by winning Saturday afternoon at Neyland Stadium.

They also could save a season that started out so wonderfully before taking such a dismal turn. Vanderbilt began the season with four consecutive victories. With Middle Tennessee State and Kentucky yet to play, a winning season and bowl invitation were well within reach.

But the Commodores lost to MTSU in their fifth game, lost to Kentucky on Saturday and lost every game in between. A season that began with a four-game winning streak could end with a seven-game losing streak.

Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson already has had an eight-game losing streak. But at least, that one ended before the season did.

A 4-7 record would be Vanderbilt's best since 1999. But how can you convince recruits you're making progress when you have lost your last seven games?

With another loss, this Vanderbilt team falls in line with so many of its predecessors. And with another loss, this UT team falls below the 1988 team.

That's pressure.