Power ranking the SEC after week 8: 8 - Tennessee
The Volunteers hung close in this game for a little bit, but throwing a 99-yard pick six at the end of the half is an eventuality that will suck the life out of any squad. They needed desperately to stay connected in this one, but were completely unable to muster the vim and vigor necessary after that play.
The Vols now have lost both of their two big games to start the year. They have a relatively easy schedule to close out, with their most difficult game coming against the Vanderbilt Commodores, so they are once again a sneaky playoff contender in the SEC.
Will they get very far in said playoff if they are to make it? Not if they keep playing like this, they won't! The defense is simply too much of an issue for this team to keep up with elite squads, as we saw unfold in Tuscaloosa.
Credit to Josh Heupel for building this team into a much better squad than many anticipated that he could after some of the offseason departures, but I'm not sure this is a team that will compete for much more than the Citrus Bowl this year. He's got some help incoming next season, but losing to Bama is a bit of "that's all she wrote" for the Volunteers' ultimate hopes.