The second edition of the College Football Playoff rankings came out on Tuesday night, and there was no shortage of controversy. Top-ranked Miami tumbled six spots despite losing a close 31-24 game to now-No. 5 Notre Dame. Indiana fell five spots despite not playing.

Tennessee found themselves up five spots after blowing out Kentucky 34-6. That puts the Vols firmly inside the field and in solid position to host a playoff game if they can finish 10-2.

But the conversation turned again to the gap between Alabama and Tennessee. The Crimson Tide moved up from five to three after a 31-13 win over LSU despite being a two loss team. That was one of the big talking points among ESPN hosts and pundits across the country after the reveal.

Can Tennessee finish ahead of Alabama if they beat Texas A&M, LSU, and Vanderbilt to finish 10-2? Maybe.

Tennessee can control their path to the SEC Championship Game over Alabama if Texas loses to LSU

But there’s a bigger issue at play here, one that hasn’t been relevant for the Vols in a very long time: the SEC Championship Game.

Tennessee holds a head-to-head tiebreaker over fellow SEC two-loss teams in Alabama and Kentucky for the second place spot behind Georgia. But the fly in the ointment is Texas, who beat the Vols back on Sept. 26 and also has two losses.

If Texas loses at LSU this weekend, that would set up Tennessee on a clear path to Atlanta if they take care of business themselves. And in that scenario, the Vols could end up finishing VERY high, like top four high, if they claim their first SEC title in 28 years.

It’s annoying to see Alabama treated as though Nick Saban is still on the sideline, and someone might want to ask committee chair Hunter Yurachek if they’re away of that. But kidding (sort of) aside, the Vols have what you could ask for at this point: a chance to change the narrative on their own.