IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTT’SSSSSSSS MONDAY!!!!
And it’s a game week Monday, at that. Finally, football is back in full this weekend. That was a heck of a way to start it on Saturday with Georgia Tech’s 24-21 win over FSU in Dublin though (which should see the Vols move up a notch in the verrrrrry early standings as a result).
Now, it’s time to turn our focus to the 2024 season for the Big Orange. I’ll do that by looking at how I think the year plays out.
1) Let’s start by looking at games that are stone-cold guaranteed wins. Chattanooga, Kent State, UTEP, and Vanderbilt. An easy four wins.
2) Let’s then take a look at the games where Tennessee should win, but it’s not a lead-pipe lock. Kentucky, Arkansas, and Mississippi State. It would be a surprise to see Tennessee not win any of these games comfortably, although Arkansas could be a bit a test on the road.
3) Now, for the games where I think Tennessee wins, but it’s going to be a real fight for 60 minutes. That’s Florida and NC State. I think the Wolfpack provide a relatively good early season test for Tennessee, but the Vols find a way to escape Charlotte 2-0. Florida is Florida. They could find thirty hungover guys lying around a Gainesville fraternity house, put them in Florida uniforms and helmets, and somehow they’d compete with our football team simply because of the name on the jersey. I think this year is another very rare exception to losing to them. Vols win a grinder thanks to a raucous Neyland Stadium environment.
4) So that’s nine wins. And unfortunately I think that’s where things end for Tennessee this year. There are two more games that I think Tennessee can win, but it goes against them. I’ll go with the Vols to lose at Oklahoma. Norman is a tough place to play, and OU has enough talent to give Tennessee problems. I’ll go with Josh Heupel’s road game bugaboos continuing here. Winnable game, but Tennessee doesn’t find a way here.
The other winnable game that doesn’t go UT’s way is at home against Alabama. Could win it, but I think Jalen Milroe and the Tide find a way to escape with a close, sickening win.
5) Then, the remaining game is one I don’t see much chance for the Vols: at Georgia. Last year showed the Vols still have a ways to go to catch up with the Bulldogs roster-wise. Until Tennessee gives Georgia a fight for four quarters, I’m not going to call for one.
6) So, I’ve got the Vols going 9-3 this season. Fortunately, due to some late-season chaos elsewhere and a pair of layup games for UT after Georgia in UTEP and Vandy, I think the Vols slip into the expanded 12-team playoff in one of the last at-large spots.
That would be a sign of progress for Heupel and the Vols in year four. Seeing the Vols playing again for a shot at the title would be something that should make Tennessee fans very happy.
We’ll see how it all plays out starting on Saturday.