Bowl Projections: ESPN drops Tennessee from College Football Playoff predictions
Tennessee Football is on the outside looking in on ESPN’s College Football Playoff projection after the Vols struggled to score for a second straight week, having to go to overtime to beat rival Florida 23-17 Saturday night.
ESPN’s Heather Dinich dropped Tennessee out of her current top 12 for the playoff while both ESPN writers Mark Schlabach and Kyle Bonagura had the Vols headed for a bowl game instead of the 12-team CFP bracket.
Schlabach had Tennessee in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa facing Indiana while Bonagura had the Vols in the TaxSlayer Bowl in Jacksonville against Louisville.
Up Next: No. 11 Tennessee vs. No. 7 Alabama
No. 11 Tennessee (5-1, 2-1 SEC) hosts No. 7 Alabama (5-1, 2-1) on Saturday afternoon (3:30 Eastern Time, ABC) with its playoff hopes at least partially on the line.
For the Vols to be a playoff team, they would likely need to finish at least 10-2 and split games with Alabama and Georgia. Tennessee goes to Athens to face Georgia on November 16.
Tennessee is ranked No. 7 in ESPN’s updated Football Power Index and No. 9 in ESPN’s SP+. The Vols have a 46% chance to make the playoff — the 12th-highest chance — according to ESPN’s Playoff Predictor.
The updated top-12 ranking from Dinich on Sunday was Texas at No. 1, ahead of No. 2 Oregon, No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Ohio State, No. 5 Georgia, No. 6 Alabama, No. 7 Miami, No. 8 Clemson, No. 9 BYU, No. 10 Boise State, No. 11 LSU and No. 12 Iowa State.
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Vols shut out in first half of last two games
Tennessee on Saturday night was shut out in the first half for a second straight week, trailing Florida 3-0 at halftime. It was a 10-0 Gator lead midway through the third quarter, before the Vols reeled off 17 straight points to take the lead.
Florida scored on a 27-yard touchdown pass on third-and-18 with 26 seconds left to tie the game. The Gators missed a 47-yard field goal to start overtime and Tennessee scored on a five-play touchdown drive to win the game.
The Vols trailed 3-0 at halftime at Arkansas last week, too, then scored 14 straight points to start the second half. The Razorbacks scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1:11 left and held on to win 19-14.
Last week Schlabach still had Tennessee as a playoff team after the Arkansas loss, seeded 10th in the 12-team field. Bonagura moved the Vols out of his bracket.
Schlabach had Tennessee going to No. 7 Penn State in the first round, with Penn State advancing to face No. 2 Ohio State in the Rose Bowl in the quarterfinal round. Bonagura, meanwhile, has the Vols facing Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa on December 31.
