Did we just see Tennessee Basketball make history in a negative way. Has a team ever DROPPED in the top 25 the week after beating another top 25 opponent and then winning on the road by nearly 20 against a team projected to make the NCAA Tournament? None of that maks any sense.
The Vols somehow fell one spot to No. 5 in the AP Poll. Jumping ahead of them was the Florida Gators, a team they beat by 20 two Saturdays ago. Florida made that leap by beating the top-ranked Auburn Tigers on the road this past Saturday, and they had to jump somewhere with that win.
At issue, though, is the fact that Auburn and the Alabama Crimson Tide stayed ahead of them. That’s bad enough since Auburn, who lost, stayed at No. 1. It seemed like the only team whose play mattered was Florida’s when it comes to SEC play.
Worst yet, though, the Duke Blue Devils also remained ahead of the Vols. Duke was No. 2 last week but then lost to the Clemson Tigers. That wasn’t enough to drop them below Tennessee, even if Florida beating Auburn was enough to move the Gators ahead of the Vols.
Think about this admission, though.
Voters are admitting Florida is elite for beating Auburn and that Auburn is still the No. 1 team in the nation in its own right. Somehow, though, Tennessee gets no credit for playing Florida twice, once without two starters, and Auburn once on the road.
Now, if the voters think that highly of Florida and Auburn, why would Tennessee not at least move ahead of Duke with two quality wins despite having just one more loss? See the flaw? Being behind the Blue Devils is the biggest crime in all of these rankings.
To be fair, the Vols were ahead of them in the Coaches Poll, remaining at No. 4, which had four SEC teams in the top four slots. It seems as if the AP voters felt wrong putting four SEC teams in those slots, and Tennessee paid the price in the end.
Nonetheless, dropping the Vols given their schedule was a ridiculous thing to do. Tennessee may not be a top four team in the nation when it’s all said and done, but the Vols have the resume for that right now. As a result, keeping them anywhere below that is ridiculous.
