The Tennessee Volunteers made a statement with a convincing 34-6 blowout win over the Kentucky Wildcats.
Tennessee was ranked outside of the top 12 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings. That won’t be the case this week. The Vols will almost certainly move into the top 10 after making a statement against No. 6 Kentucky.
On3’s Andy Staples has Tennessee moving all the way from No. 13 to No. 4 in his updated playoff rankings. The team currently holds a 7-2 record overall and a 4-2 standing in the SEC.
I won’t be too bent out of shape if the committee has Alabama above Tennessee as long as the Volunteers are closer to the Crimson Tide,
Staples wrote.
Staples detailed his reasoning regarding other conference contenders. After all, I have Tennessee above Texas even though Texas has a head-to-head win against the Vols and the same record as Tennessee. But automatically moving Texas would have forced me to put the Longhorns ahead of Alabama as well,
he explained.
The analyst also pointed to the strength of the Volunteers’ resume. According to his explanation, the Crimson Tide and the Vols boast comparable victories and avoid the pair of dreadful defeats that hurt the Longhorns, which is why he places both Tennessee and Alabama ahead of Texas.
Not everyone shares the same bullish outlook on the Volunteers. The Athletic’s Scott Dochterman placed Tennessee at No. 10 in his predicted rankings.
Projections from the CFB Playoff Predictor currently give Tennessee a 39 percent chance to make the playoff. The data also assigns an 8 percent chance to win the SEC, a 20 percent chance to reach the SEC title game, an 8 percent chance to secure a first-round bye, and a 3 percent chance to win the national title.
The Volunteers head on the road next. They face Texas A&M on Saturday, November 14.
Early projections view Tennessee as the favorite in College Station. The team holds a 57 percent probability to win the matchup, with overall CFP odds showing a 59 percent chance to win and a 12 percent chance to lose moving forward.
Addressing the apparent touchdown by DaSaahn Brame during Tennessee’s victory over Kentucky, Josh Heupel cleared up the inquiry that was on the mind of every supporter. The Tennessee Volunteers had another touchdown that didn’t count this week.
The official College Football Playoff committee rankings will reveal whether the panel aligns with higher projections like Staples or more conservative estimates like Dochterman. A placement close to Alabama would set up a fierce debate regarding seeding hierarchy within the SEC.
