With the College Football Playoff being the goal for Tennessee’s football team, there are more games to be mindful of than just those on the Vols’ schedule.
Here are four things you need to know about the College Football Playoff landscape that didn’t directly involve the Vols on Saturday.
Those guys are beatable
Tennessee will face Alabama next weekend at 3:30 EST in Neyland Stadium. That looked like a daunting task before the season, but looks much more accomplishable after Alabama’s last two weeks. As you already know, Bama lost to Vanderbilt last week 40-35 in the upset of the decade. Surely, everyone thought, the Crimson Tide would bounce back in a big way against South Carolina on Saturday. That didn’t happen for No. 7 Bama, which could drop in the polls after their recent issues.
Alabama struggled to beat the Gamecocks at home and had to hold on to 27-25 lead late in the game before South Carolina turned the ball over on its final drive. The Gamecocks began the fourth quarter with 19-14 lead and had a chance to retake the lead in the fourth quarter but missed a field goal. South Carolina failed on a two-point opportunity to tie the game late, then recovered an onside kick, but a Hail Mary heave from South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers was intercepted.
Gambling analyst Tyler Wyatt predicted that the Vols will be a two-point underdog at home on Saturday when the Vols host the Crimson Tide. One would have thought Bama would have found a way to put the Vanderbilt loss behind them, but they either couldn’t or just didn’t. Either way, that’s good for the Vols.
Bama quarterback Jalen Milroe threw two interceptions and was flagged for intentional grounding in the end zone, which resulted in a safety. He finished the game 16-of-23 for 209 yards with a passing touchdown and two rushing scores.
Those guys are beatable Part II
We all know that Georgia tends to play down to lessor opponents. That was the case early against Mississippi State on Saturday. The Bulldogs hung tight with Georgia midway through the second quarter, when the game was 13-10 in Georgia’s favor. However, the Bulldogs from Athens didn’t overwhelm Mississippi State, which could be the worst team in the the SEC. Per Wyatt, the Vols are projected to be an 8 1/2-point underdog in Athens on Oct. 16. Georgia won 41-31.
That win doesn’t look so great
The Vols beat an Oklahoma team 25-15 in September that just continues to get beat up. With a massive amount of injuries, especially at receiver, the Sooners offense was pretty hapless against Texas in a 34-3 loss in the Red River Rivalry shootout. If the Arkansas win ends up being one of the Vols’ most impressive victories, it won’t exactly jump off of the Vols’ College Football Playoff resume.
With a daunting schedule remaining, it looks like Oklahoma could end the season 8-4, at best. The Sooners are currently 4-2 with South Carolina at home, Ole Miss on the road, Maine at home, Missouri on the road, Alabama at home and LSU in Baton Rouge to finish the season.
The Vols should be able to cruise against the rest
Based on Saturday’s scores, the Vols should be significant favorites in the rest of their SEC games. Tennessee is projected to be a 10 1/2-point favorite against Kentucky, a 40 1/2-point favorite against UTEP and a 15-point favorite against Vanderbilt.
