Has Tennessee-Vanderbilt become better rivalry than Tennessee-Alabama?

 Tennessee fans once looked down on the in-state rivalry with Vanderbilt. And why wouldn’t they?

From 1983 through 2004, Tennessee won 22 consecutive games in the series. Then, after Vanderbilt upset the Vols in 2005, Tennessee reeled off six more consecutive victories. Nine of those 28 victories were by 29 or more points. Seven were shutouts.

Back then, no one could have imagined reading: "Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt is a better rivalry than Tennessee vs. Alabama." But you just did.

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Never mind that no one has written a book titled “The Fourth Saturday of November.” Or all the tradition behind the Vols and Tide's annual October get-together, which will be resumed Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala. You can’t hide from the facts.

UT has lost 10 consecutive games against Alabama. Only two of those games were decided by fewer than 14 points.   

Conversely, Vanderbilt has beaten the Vols three times in the past five seasons. And two of its victories were by double-figure margins.

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As much as the Alabama-Tennessee game might mean to Tennessee, it has become little more than a speed bump for the Tide.

Saturday’s game will offer no great opportunities for No. 1 Alabama. It just needs to make sure nothing goes terribly wrong before its open date and the stretch run for the SEC West championship.

Obviously, the Tide's lack of incentive could work to UT’s advantage. How motivated could unbeaten Alabama possibly be against a 3-3 team?

Aside from the double-figure winning streak, many of Alabama’s current players were on hand for last season’s 49-10 victory in Neyland Stadium. That was its second-most-lopsided conference victory in 2016.

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The stats won't provide evidence that Alabama should be on upset alert. For example, Alabama ranks seventh nationally in yards rushing per game, and Tennessee ranks 122nd in run defense, giving up an alarming 242.8 yards per game.

Watching videotape of the current Vols won’t serve Alabama well, either. It couldn’t help but be overconfident if it watched Georgia beat the Vols 41-0 or observed just a few minutes of Tennessee's offense stumbling around in the past three games.

Even Tennessee’s biggest victory, over Georgia Tech, should only inflate Alabama’s confidence. So what if Tennessee prevailed in double overtime. It gave up 655 yards.

In fact, Alabama's next three SEC games all should be more challenging than this one. It will play LSU at home, Mississippi State on the road and Auburn on the road. Those three teams have beaten Alabama 10 times combined since UT last defeated Alabama on Oct. 21, 2006.

Ole Miss also has beaten Alabama twice since then. Arkansas is the only SEC West opponent that hasn’t defeated Alabama since the Vols last did.

Based on recent history, Tennessee is one of the least threatening opponents on Alabama’s conference schedule. And that doesn’t make for much of a rivalry.

Alabama has scheduled accordingly. It's taking its open date after the Tennessee game, not before.

Reach John Adams at john.adams@knoxnews.com or 865-342-6284 and on Twitter @johnadamskns.