Where Tennessee is ranked in College Football Playoff Top 25

Tennessee is the No. 1 team in the initial College Football Playoff rankings released Tuesday night by the CFP Selection Committee. No. 2 in the ranking is Ohio State, followed by No. 3 Georgia. Clemson is No. 4, ahead of No. 5 Michigan and No. 6 Alabama.

“When you look at the three teams (Tennessee, Ohio State and Georgia), all three very, very good teams that the committee liked, I think the two (Tennessee) wins you’re looking at, with Alabama and at LSU, really sealed the day for Tennessee,” Boo Coorigan, the College Football Playoff Selection Committee chair, said Tuesday night.

Tennessee checks in at No. 1 in the first edition of the #CFBPlayoff rankings. pic.twitter.com/N34pF7DlVN

— Volquest Staff (@Volquest_On3) November 1, 2022

WHAT’S NEXT FOR TENNESSEE

The Vols, who moved up to a tie for No. 2 in the Associated Press Top 25 on Monday, travel to AP No. 1 Georgia on Saturday (3:30 p.m. Eastern Time; TV: CBS) in a showdown at Sanford Stadium in Athens. Saturday’s game is just the third time in SEC history that the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the AP Top 25 have met.

Three of the final four games of the regular-season schedule are on the road. Tennessee will host Missouri on November 12, a Noon Eastern Time kickoff at Neyland Stadium, then go to South Carolina on November 19 and Vanderbilt on November 26.

Georgia has won five straight against Tennessee, dating back to the Jauan Jennings Hail Mary catch to lift his team to a 34-31 win at Georgia in 2016. 

The Vols earlier this season snapped a five-year losing streak to Florida and snapped a 15-year skid with Chase McGrath’s 40-yard field goal in the 52-49 win over then-No. 3 Alabama last month.

Second-year Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said during his press conference on Monday that he never had to convince his team they could win big game.

“They’ve convinced themselves,” Heupel said. “We talked about a team of hope, a team of hope. We were on that spectrum a year ago. Because of our work habits, not just during training camp or during the season, but the work habits since we got back last January.

“There’s an expectation within our locker room and you pair that with good leadership with good leadership inside of the locker room,” he added, “staff and players that are connected, that compete extremely hard every single day – you put yourself in a position to go play good football and try to fight and find a way to be on the plus side of the scoreboard when you walk off the field.”

HOW TENNESSEE GOT HERE

Tennessee (8-0, 4-0 SEC) is off to its best start since the BCS National Championship season in 1998, when the Vols went a perfect 13-0, winning the 1999 Fiesta Bowl over Florida State, 23-16. 

So far this season Tennessee has five ranked wins — 24-37 in overtime at No. 17 Pitt on September 10, 38-33 over No. 20 Florida on September 24, 40-13 at No. 25 LSU on October 8, 52-49 over No. 3 Alabama on October 15 and the 44-6 win over No. 19 Kentucky on Saturday.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, Tennessee has the No. 1 strength of record in college football, which gives the average ranked team only an 8-percent chance to go undefeated playing the same schedule as the Vols.

Heupel said after the dominant performance against Kentucky on Saturday night that this team’s best football is still ahead. 

“There are a lot of things that we can still be cleaner at,” he said. “(Against Kentucky), just red-zone offense, there were a couple opportunities off of turnovers. We didn’t operate and function at the level that we’re capable of. Doesn’t mean all 11. Sometimes it’s just one guy. There are things that we can be cleaner in. 

“At times, on defense and special teams, some of those same things. It’s a constant growth and evolution to who you are individually and collectively. I do like this football team because they do have good practice habits. You can tell that they care about each other and they’re going to play hard for each other.”