Playoff committee member answers question that Tennessee fans have about the Vols' ranking
The Tennessee Vols came in at No. 7 in the first College Football Playoff rankings of the 2024 season. There are several weeks left in the season, so these initial rankings don't mean much, but they at least give us some insight into how the playoff committee currently views the top teams in the sport. […]
The Tennessee Vols came in at No. 7 in the first College Football Playoff rankings of the 2024 season.
There are several weeks left in the season, so these initial rankings don't mean much, but they at least give us some insight into how the playoff committee currently views the top teams in the sport.
After the rankings were revealed on Tuesday night, some Tennessee fans questioned why the Vols were ranked one spot below Penn State.
The Nittany Lions, like the Volunteers, are 7-1 through their first eight games of the season. Penn State's best win, however, is against Illinois, a team that is no longer ranked in the Top 25 after suffering back to back losses to Oregon and Minnesota. The Nittany Lions' one loss came against Ohio State.
Tennessee, meanwhile, has a quality win against Alabama, but the Vols' one loss came to unranked Arkansas.
Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel, a member of the playoff committee, explained on Tuesday night why Penn State is ranked ahead of Tennessee in the initial rankings.
"Well, Penn State lost to the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes," said Manuel. "And it was a game that went back and forth, and obviously a game that could have gone the other way. It was back and forth. In that, they have wins over Illinois and Southern Cal in overtime, an opening win at West Virginia, which is difficult to play. So we looked at their body of work."
"Tennessee has an impressive win over Alabama at No. 11 and wins over North Carolina State and Oklahoma, 4-1 against teams above .500," continued Manuel. "The loss at Arkansas was something that we discussed a lot. So looking at the resume, looking at what we've seen, the offensive performance, their (Penn State) tight end Tyler Warren is a dominating force on offense. So I just think Penn State, in terms of their body of work and what the committee saw in terms of their body of work, that came to the ranking of Penn State at 6 and Tennessee at 7."
So it sounds like the Vols' loss to Arkansas is the separator for Tennessee and Penn State.
The good news for Tennessee is that if they can beat Georgia later this month, they will almost certainly jump Penn State (and a couple of other teams) in the rankings.
