After Tennessee fans shook off their disappointment from a loss to Georgia, they realized that a College Football Playoff bid is still within reach.
But the Vols (8-2) will need to beat UTEP (2-8) on Saturday (1 p.m. ET, SEC Network+) and Vanderbilt (6-4) on Nov. 30. And then they’ll need help from other teams.
The updated College Football Playoff rankings will be released on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN).
Tennessee will be a bubble team and clustered along with several others for one of the final spots. So UT fans will have a rooting interest in other games.
Here are seven ways the Vols could make it into the 12-team playoff.
Ole Miss loses to Florida
Ole Miss (8-2), Georgia (8-2), Alabama (8-2) and Tennessee have the same record and a head-to-head win against another team in the foursome. So any loss by a team in this group helps the others.
Ole Miss plays Florida (5-5) at The Swamp on Saturday (noon ET, ABC). The Rebels are favored. But the Gators are rejuvenated after beating LSU behind dynamic freshman quarterback DJ Lagway.
UT fans should root for Lane Kiffin to lose. That shouldn’t be hard.
VOLS MAILBAGQuestions about playoff odds, Josh Heupel’s nemesis, Nico Iamaleava
Ohio State blows out Indiana
Indiana (10-0) plays at Ohio State (9-1) on Saturday (noon ET, FOX). Tennessee could benefit from a blowout by either team. But an Ohio State win by a wide margin seems more likely.
Indiana is undefeated, but it has a weak schedule and no Top 25 wins.
If the Hoosiers lose to Ohio State in a blowout, it would feed skepticism about their legitimacy and perhaps push them out of the bracket.
UT fans should root for Ohio State to rout Indiana.
Notre Dame loses to Army or USC
If Notre Dame (9-1) wins out, it will make the field. But considering Notre Dame already has an ugly loss to Northern Illinois, another defeat likely would bury the Irish.
Notre Dame plays undefeated Army (9-0) on Saturday (7 p.m. ET, NBC) and then Southern Cal (5-5) on Nov. 30.
UT fans should practice patriotism and root for Army to win.
Texas-Texas A&M winner loses SEC title game
Texas (9-1) plays at Texas A&M (8-2) on Nov. 30. If both avoid an upset this week, the winner of their Lonestar State showdown would advance to the SEC title game.
Suppose Texas A&M beats Texas but loses the SEC title game for its third loss. There would be a good debate between the Aggies and Vols based on resume.
Suppose Texas beats Texas A&M but loses the SEC title game for its second loss. Texas doesn’t have a Top 25 win, so its resume may be weaker than Tennessee’s in that scenario.
There’s a solid chance that Alabama advances to the SEC championship game based on a series of tiebreakers. If Alabama won the SEC title, the Vols would own a victory over the conference champion, strengthening their resume.
UT fans should root against a Texas school in the SEC title game to create chaos.
Penn State loses to Minnesota or Maryland
Penn State has a strong ranking but a weak schedule. And it lost 20-13 to Ohio State in its only game against a Top 25 opponent.
So another loss would drop Penn State precipitously.
The Nittany Lions play at Minnesota (6-4) on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS) and against Maryland (4-6) on Nov. 30.
UT fans should root for Penn State to lose either game.
Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss lose rivalry games
On Nov. 29, Ole Miss plays Mississippi State (2-8) in the Egg Bowl, and Georgia plays Georgia Tech (6-4) in the “Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate” rivalry game. On Nov. 30, Alabama plays Auburn (4-6) in the Iron Bowl.
If any of the favorites lost their rivalry game, Tennessee would jump ahead of them. However, all three favorites will play at home, making those upsets unlikely.
Nevertheless, UT should root for upsets in those rivalry games.
Tennessee is still in the field
Don’t assume that Tennessee will be outside the bracket when it’s released on Tuesday.
Most media projections list the Vols as the first team out, but a few others have them barely making the field.
That disagreement is a good reminder that these rankings are subjective. Any of these scenarios could put the Vols back in the bracket, but they may still be in it with no assistance needed.
Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Emailadam.sparks@knoxnews.com. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.
Get the latest news and insight on SEC football by subscribing to the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.
