Where the Tennessee Vols fall in ESPN's post-spring power rankings
The Tennessee Vols aren't quite a perennial top-five program under Josh Heupel just yet, but they aren't far away. Tennessee announced its return to relevancy last season with thunder by blowing out LSU in Baton Rouge and then beating Alabama for the time since 2006. The Vols have to prove they weren't a one-year wonder, […]
The Tennessee Vols aren't quite a perennial top-five program under Josh Heupel just yet, but they aren't far away.
Tennessee announced its return to relevancy last season with thunder by blowing out LSU in Baton Rouge and then beating Alabama for the time since 2006.
The Vols have to prove they weren't a one-year wonder, however, before analysts go all-in on Tennessee being a powerhouse again in college football.
ESPN revealed their post-spring top 25 power rankings on Tuesday morning and they don't have Tennessee inside the top 10.
Instead, ESPN's Mark Schlabach has the Vols at No. 11.
From ESPN: Did the Volunteers catch lightning in a bottle last year with quarterback Hendon Hooker and receivers Jalin Hyatt and Cedric Tillman? We're going to find out this season as all three of them will be playing in the NFL. Michigan transfer quarterback Joe Milton III worked with the No. 1 offense throughout the spring after performing well in a 31-14 victory over Clemson in the Capital One Orange Bowl. Freshman Nicholaus Iamaleava, the No. 6 pocket passer in the ESPN 300, looked the part. He's 6-foot-6 and wasn't overwhelmed by the tempo of coach Josh Heupel's hurry-up offense. Receiver Bru McCoy missed the spring and Oregon transfer Dont'e Thornton was held out of the spring game. The Volunteers have to get a lot better on defense if they're going to contend with Georgia in the SEC East.
Some fans may not agree with that ranking — and I get it, the Vols have a lot of talent entering the 2023 season — but I think it's fair from Schlabach.
There's always going to be a little bit of doubt when a program loses a quarterback that was a Heisman frontrunner at one point (unless it's Alabama or Georgia, those programs have earned the benefit of the doubt).
If Tennessee takes down Florida, South Carolina, and Texas A&M to start the season, they'll be a top-five program for a pivotal road matchup against Alabama. And if they beat the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa for the first time since 2003, they'll again be in the conversation to be the No. 1 team in the nation.
Tennessee gets plenty of disrespect (just ask Hendon Hooker), but this feels like a fair ranking based on where the program's been over the last 15 years. Prove it for a second year in a row, and Josh Heupel's squad will start being a fixture in preseason top 25 polls.
