Tennessee dominated Kentucky on Saturday night in Knoxville in a game that was a must-win for the Vols.

The Volunteers used a big second half to earn a 34-6 win over the Wildcats. Tennessee is now poised to move into the top 10 of the College Football Playoff rankings.

It took a little while for Tennessee to pull away in this game — they led just 10-6 at halftime — but the Vols stayed patient and played the field position game before the offense was finally able to break through for some 21 points in the fourth quarter.

Vols head coach Josh Heupel doesn’t get a lot of love nationally. And to be honest, I saw quite a bit of negativity directed his way from UT fans after Tennessee’s heartbreaking loss to South Carolina two weeks ago.

But I think Heupel has done an incredible coaching job this season. I think he’s continued to get better as a coach — and Saturday night against Kentucky was a perfect example of how.

Heupel stayed disciplined in his approach early in the game when things weren’t going to plan for the Vols’ offense. He didn’t get frustrated and go for it on fourth down a couple of times near mid-field. Heupel trusted his defense, didn’t make emotional decisions, and his team eventually pulled away.

At this point, anyone who doesn’t recognize that Heupel is one of the top five or six coaches in college football just isn’t paying attention. I mean, we’ve seen plenty of media-darling coaches be up-and-down the last few years. Brent Venables at Oklahoma, Mike Elko at Texas A&M, etc. Heupel, though, has been consistent while also evolving.

The results haven’t always been what fans or Heupel wants — no one wins every game in this era — but Tennessee has been a really good football team for the last five years.

And Heupel has done it through a ton of adversity. He lost his quarterback (Nico Iamaleava) who was returning from a playoff run five months before the 2025 season and had to scramble, then he lost that quarterback (Joey Aguilar) when he was the only player in college football (at least that’s how it felt) who couldn’t get a waiver to play in 2026.

Despite the youth and injuries this season (the Vols have lost a couple of key players this season, including an All-American offensive lineman in Wendell Moe), Heupel has a team that no one in the national media said had a chance to make the playoff now just three wins away from making the playoff.

Look, I know everyone wants a dream season. I just don’t think you’re gonna see many (if any) teams get through the SEC schedule without a blemish or two. Losses are gonna happen. Heupel is consistently getting his team to November with a chance to get into the tournament, and he’s doing it by showing a willingness to do it in different ways. It’s not just tempo and wide splits. It’s bunched formations and controlling the clock, it’s explosive plays using the backup quarterback. It’s whatever needs to be done to win that night.

College football learned on Saturday night that Tennessee has an elite football coach. I think some Tennessee fans may have learned that, too.