The Tennessee Vols will enter their game this weekend against South Carolina as the No. 5 ranked team in the College Football Playoff rankings.

Tennessee is the highest-ranked one-loss team. And at least one of the teams ranked ahead of them — either Michigan or Ohio State because they play each other — will have a loss before the end of the season.

The Vols, however, still might need some help to make the playoff. That's because USC could end the season as a one-loss Pac-12 champion.

While the Trojans are currently two spots behind the Vols in the rankings, it wouldn't be a surprise if USC jumped Tennessee after winning the Pac-12.

There are a couple of scenarios as well that could cause some problems for UT.

With that in mind, there are several games this weekend that could help guarantee the Volunteers a spot in the playoff (as long as UT also wins out).

And here's who Tennessee fans should be rooting for in those games.

Ohio State @ Maryland: Tennessee fans would love to see Maryland win this game. It would essentially eliminate the Buckeyes from the playoff (unless a lot of crazy stuff happens in the last two weeks). Even if they beat Michigan the following week, I doubt they'd get in over Tennessee with a loss to Maryland on their resumé.

Illinois @ Michigan: An Illinois win would do the same thing to Michigan that a Maryland win would do to Ohio State. Michigan's resumé is already weak. If they lose to Illinois, they won't be making the playoff even with a win over the Buckeyes in the season's final week.

TCU @ Baylor: This is the most important game of the weekend for the Vols. If Baylor beats TCU, it would all but lock the Vols into the playoff (again, assuming they win their final two games). Baylor is coming off a 31-3 loss to Kansas State, but they had won three straight games prior to that loss.

USC @ UCLA: This game is right there with the TCU game in terms of importance. If UCLA beats USC it will mean that every team in the Pac-12 has at least two losses. And that would basically eliminate the Trojans and the Pac-12 from the playoff.

Miami @ Clemson: This one isn't nearly as important, but if a one-loss Clemson team wins the ACC, they'll be lobbying hard to make the playoff. Would one-loss Tennessee without a conference championship get the nod over Clemson with one loss and an ACC championship? Vol fans don't want to find out. Miami winning this game would eliminate that possibility.

Georgia Tech @ North Carolina: UNC is currently No. 13 in the rankings, so they'd have to climb quite a bit. But they only have one loss and they could still win the ACC. I don't think a one-loss ACC champion UNC would keep Tennessee out. But again, Vols fans don't want to find out. Tennessee needs Georgia Tech to win this one.

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