Josh Heupel: SEC strength of schedule should matter in College Football Playoff selections

On Saturday, Tennessee suffered its second loss of the season, falling 31-17 to Georgia. After the game, Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel revealed where he believes Tennessee stands in the College Football Playoff picture.

“I have no idea, man,” Heupel said. “All I know is this league is college football as good as it gets. Like, it is. Teams get beat on the road sometimes. It’s hard to win, man, in this league.

“It’s a good football team that we just played. Lost a couple of close ones on the road against good football teams. Had turnovers in that game. It’s a good football team. We’re a good football team, too.”

Tennessee certainly hasn’t had it easy this season. According to the Kelley Ford Ratings, Tennessee has the 27th-most difficult schedule in the country. Of course, this tough schedule has not only provided Tennessee with painful losses but also résumé-building wins.

For example, Tennessee’s 24-17 win over Alabama will play a key role in the College Football Playoff selection committee’s eyes, as the Crimson Tide are expected to make the playoffs.

Additionally, Tennessee boasts wins over teams such as NC State, Oklahoma and Florida — two of which were ranked at the time the Volunteers defeated them. Besides Georgia, Tennessee’s only other loss this season came against Arkansas.

While this loss isn’t ideal for the Volunteers, it could be much worse. The Razorbacks have proven to be a dangerous team this season, taking top-tier teams like Texas and Texas A&M down to the wire.

In the end, the selection committee will consider all of these factors when discussing whether Tennessee deserves a spot in the CFP. The Volunteers have no room for error, as they were ranked No. 7 in the CFP Rankings last week.

More than likely, Tennessee will be on the edge of the playoffs and be forced to dominate its final two games while hoping for other teams to suffer upsets. Alas, only time will tell the Volunteers’ fate.

On Saturday, Josh Heupel and Co. will look to have a statement showing against UTEP at 1 p.m. ET. The game will air live on ESPN+.