Tennessee missed a huge opportunity last weekend against South Carolina.

A win against the Gamecocks would’ve meant the Vols just needed to go 3-1 in November in order to lock down a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff.

But because of the 27-24 loss to South Carolina, Tennessee now likely needs to win out to make the playoff.

And even then, it’s not a complete guarantee that Tennessee would be one of the 12 teams in the tournament.

The A to Z Sports CFP predictor currently gives Tennessee a 96 percent chance of making the playoff if they go 4-0 in November (the Vols would also have a 59 percent chance of reaching the SEC Championship game if they win out).

(You can run through all the scenarios for every team with the A to Z Sports CFP predictor.)

Tennessee needs to win out, but there could still be several two-loss SEC teams at the end of the regular season

There are still a couple of scenarios in play where there could be a cluster of two loss SEC teams at the end of November.

If Tennessee, Alabama, Texas, and Florida all win out, then you could potentially have Tennessee, Alabama, Texas, Florida, Georgia, and Kentucky all as two loss teams. It’s possible someone gets left out in that scenario. Or if Ole Miss beats Georgia then swap the Bulldogs with the Rebels in that scenario…or if Georgia beats Florida and then loses to Ole Miss then you could swap the Rebels and the Gators. (It’s confusing, but that’s why we have the CFP predictor!)

And let’s also not forget that seeding is important. Tennessee would obviously love to host a playoff game in the first round if they make it.

Tennessee needs the logjam in the SEC to disappear

Obviously, the fewer SEC teams there are with two losses the better for Tennessee.

Vols fans need to root for these two loss teams to lose in Week 9:

• Georgia to beat Florida
• Arkansas to beat Missouri (this would also help Tennessee’s win over Arkansas look better)
• Auburn to beat Ole Miss (this would also help Tennessee’s win over Auburn look better)
• Mississippi State to beat Texas (this would hurt the way Tennessee’s loss to Texas is viewed, but it would get the Longhorns out of the way)

Tennessee needs certain teams to win to help their strength of schedule look better

The debates over where teams should be seeded is going to be fierce, so the Vols will need all the help they can get to make their resumé look good.

(Note: Some of these are covered in the section above.)

Vols fans should root for these teams to win to help Tennessee’s strength of schedule look better:

• South Carolina to beat Oklahoma
• Georgia Tech to beat Pittsburgh

Tennessee needs some teams outside of the SEC to lose to help clear the Vols’ path and for seeding purposes

• Arizona to beat Texas Tech (Arizona also has one loss, but Texas Tech is ranked higher right now)
• Navy to beat Notre Dame (The Irish only have one loss)
• Syracuse to beat SMU (SMU has just one loss)
• Arizona State to beat BYU (The Cougars have just one loss)
• Minnesota to beat Indiana (The Hoosiers have just one loss)
• Oregon to beat Northwestern (I’m not sure how the committee would view Northwestern, but they have just one loss)
• Virginia to beat Wake Forest (The Demon Deacons only have one loss)
• Nevada to beat UCLA (The Bruins are still undefeated)
• North Carolina to beat Miami (The Hurricanes are undefeated and ranked No. 1)
• Ohio State to beat USC (this is one that could possibly go either way, but if USC wins out and finishes with two losses and has wins over the Buckeyes and the Hoosiers, that could be a problem for the Vols)

It’s going to be a crazy final month of the season. The most important thing for Tennessee is to win out, but these results could potentially help the Vols when it comes selection time.