When I started this recap of the season, I could see 8-4 staring the Volunteers in the face.
However, as I went along, I started softening my view of how the Tennessee football team was about to fare.
Texas is going to be tough. It’s a home game with a noon start. The atmosphere is going to be nuts. However, this will be the first big game in which either Faizon Brandon or George MacIntyre plays. Mistakes are going to be made.
That’s why I have the Vols losing a close one.
Georgia Tech won’t be easy, but I’m counting on Tennessee’s running game, along with an improved defense with a lot to prove, playing well enough to win that game.
Auburn and Arkansas will both be feeling their way through this season with new coaches and a boatload of transfers. Those are games that shouldn’t get away from the Vols.
And then comes ‘Bama.
After having experienced Texas, either Brandon or MacIntyre should have a feel for what it takes to play in front of a crazy crowd. Tennessee should be much better equipped to handle it.
Once Tennessee outgunned Alabama in 2022, the mystique disappeared. The Crimson Tide no longer seemed unbeatable.
Plus, Alabama has its emotional showdown against Georgia the week before, so getting players to a peak level two weeks in a row isn’t easy.
Just on a hunch, I could see Tennessee pulling this one out.
South Carolina is going to be tougher than some people think, though if the Gamecocks implode by then, coach Shane Beamer could be gone or on the way out. That could be a tough one.
Originally, I had a feeling Tennessee could lose to Texas A&M on the road, then come home and lay an egg against LSU.
I’m still convinced about the loss to the Aggies on the road, but I changed my mind about LSU. One peek at the Tigers’ schedule — Alabama and Texas before Tennessee — had me alter the way I viewed that game.
That’s going to change everything. Beating Vanderbilt, which will hardly resemble last year’s 10-2 teams, would put the Vols in the College Football Playoff field. They won’t let that slip away, especially to a team they owe a payback.
Then again, 7-5 won’t be that far away, either. That’s what makes college football so great.
Strap up and get ready.
