2020 College Football TV Schedule: Week 7

College football starts early this week with a game tonight between scrappy Coastal Carolina and No. 21 Louisiana. Old friends Georgia State take on Arkansas State tomorrow night, and Friday features a couple of ranked non-Power 5 teams in action on ESPN.

The Vols host Kentucky at noon on the SEC Network, and then there are five (Vanderbilt-Missouri got postponed) other SEC games to watch on Gameday, including the big one, No. 3 Georgia at No. 2 Alabama at 8:00 on CBS.

First up is this week’s college football TV schedule curated just for Vols fans. A full and searchable college football TV schedule for this week is below the curated version.

Wednesday, October 14, 2020

Away Home Time TV How Why
Coastal Carolina #21 Louisiana 7:30 PM ESPN Live It's football

Maybe?

Thursday, October 15, 2020

Away Home Time TV How Why
Georgia State Arkansas State 7:30 PM ESPN Live It's football

Go Panthers?

Friday, October 16, 2020

Away Home Time TV How Why
#17 SMU Tulane 6:00 PM ESPN Live It's football
#15 BYU Houston 9:30 PM ESPN Live It's football

Again, maybe?

Gameday, October 17, 2020

Away Home Time TV How Why
NOON
#14 Auburn South Carolina 12:00 PM ESPN DVR Future opponent, former opponent
Kentucky #18 Tennessee 12:00 PM SECN Live Go Vols!
AFTERNOON
LSU #10 Florida POSTPONED
Ole Miss Arkansas 3:30 PM ESPN2 Channel Hop Future opponent
#11 Texas A&M Mississippi State 4:00 PM SECN Channel Hop Future opponent
EVENING
#3 Georgia #2 Alabama 8:00 PM CBS Live Former opponent, future opponent
Vanderbilt Missouri POSTPONED

The main event for Vols fans is Tennessee taking on Kentucky at high noon on the SEC Network. But set your DVRs for the Auburn-South Carolina game, too, to get a look at how Auburn is doing against a former opponent of the Vols.

The afternoon slate will provide a look at three future Vols’ opponents in Florida, Arkansas, and Texas A&M.

The big game — future Vols’ opponent No. 2 Alabama and former Vols’ opponent No. 3 Georgia — gets an 8:00 kick on CBS. The Vanderbilt-Missouri game was postponed.

Full searchable college football TV schedule

Here’s the entire 2020 college football TV schedule for this week:

10/14/20 Coastal Carolina #21 Louisiana 7:30 PM ESPN
10/15/20 Georgia State Arkansas State 7:30 PM ESPN
10/16/20 #17 SMU Tulane 6:00 PM ESPN
10/16/20 #15 BYU Houston 9:30 PM ESPN
10/17/20 #1 Clemson Georgia Tech 12:00 PM ABC
10/17/20 #8 Cincinnati Tulsa POSTPONED
10/17/20 Pittsburgh #13 Miami 12:00 PM ACCN
10/17/20 #14 Auburn South Carolina 12:00 PM ESPN
10/17/20 Kentucky #18 Tennessee 12:00 PM SECN
10/17/20 Navy East Carolina 12:00 PM ESPN+
10/17/20 Texas State South Alabama 12:00 PM ESPNU
10/17/20 South Florida Temple 12:00 PM ESPN+
10/17/20 Liberty Syracuse 12:00 PM ACCNX
10/17/20 Kansas West Virginia 12:00 PM
10/17/20 Army UTSA 1:30 PM CBSSN
10/17/20 Western Kentucky UAB 1:30 PM
10/17/20 Louisville #4 Notre Dame 2:30 PM NBC
10/17/20 LSU #10 Florida POSTPONED
10/17/20 Duke NC State 3:30 PM ACCNX
10/17/20 UCF Memphis 3:30 PM ABC
10/17/20 Ole Miss Arkansas 3:30 PM ESPN2
10/17/20 #11 Texas A&M Mississippi State 4:00 PM SECN
10/17/20 Virginia Wake Forest 4:00 PM ACCN
10/17/20 UMass Georgia Southern 4:00 PM ESPNU
10/17/20 North Texas Middle Tennessee 5:00 PM CBSSN
10/17/20 Marshall Louisiana Tech 6:00 PM CBSSN
10/17/20 #5 North Carolina Florida State 7:00 PM ESPN
10/17/20 Eastern Kentucky Troy 7:00 PM ESPN3
10/17/20 #7 Oklahoma State Baylor POSTPONED
10/17/20 Vanderbilt Missouri POSTPONED
10/17/20 Southern Mississippi UTEP 7:30 PM ESPN2
10/17/20 #3 Georgia #2 Alabama 8:00 PM CBS
10/17/20 Boston College #23 Virginia Tech 8:00 PM ACCN
10/17/20 Florida International Charlotte 8:00 PM ESPNU

Tennessee-Kentucky: Head-to-head statistical rankings

Below is a look at Tennessee’s national stat rankings side-by-side with the counterpart rankings for the Kentucky Wildcats.

When the Vols have the ball

Link to table

Where’s the opportunity?

Sigh. Passing game?

Where’s the danger?

It looks like it’s going to be difficult to run against these guys, and it looks like our third down conversion problems aren’t going to get any better this week. Basically, Kentucky may not be up to Georgia’s level on defense, but Tennessee’s offense is going to have its hands full again this weekend.

Gameplan for the Vols on offense

Do better. Don’t turn the ball over. Hope the defense can carry the day.

Vols on defense

Link to table

Where’s the opportunity?

Okay, that’s better. The Vols appear to have a somewhat significant advantage on defense over Kentucky in most areas . . .

Where’s the danger?

. . . except in the run game and on third down. Also, Kentucky apparently doesn’t throw interceptions.

Gameplan for the Vols on defense

What I said against Georgia holds true in this game: Win first down. Get them off schedule to get an advantage on third down and then win third down. Any turnover in our favor will be really, really valuable.

Special teams

Link to table

The Vols appear to have the advantage on special teams.

Turnovers and penalties

Link to table

We’ve seen how much this can change in a week, so it’s hard to say whether either team has an actual advantage here. Just protect the ball and limit the penalties.

Read: Georgia post-game articles

If you read only one thing about the Vols today . . .

. . . make it this, from 247Sports:

Other Vols stuff worth reading today

  1. Georgia 44 Tennessee 21: No Straight Lines, via Gameday on Rocky Top
  2. Pruitt laments Vols’ turnovers as difference in loss to Georgia, via 247Sports
  3. Pruitt says in week ahead, Vols will find out who they are, via 247Sports
  4. Pruitt on loss: ‘This really pisses me off, just to be honest’, via 247Sports
  5. Update your expectations with the 2020 GRT Expected Win Total Machine, via Gameday on Rocky Top
  6. Tennessee Vols statistical ranking trends – After Week 6, via Gameday on Rocky Top
  7. Gameday on Rocky Top Podcast – Episode 169 – They’re just better, via Gameday on Rocky Top

Behind the paywalls

  • How Tennessee’s early hope at Georgia turned into a humbling loss, via The Athletic
  • Tennessee’s O-line struggles, a goal-line stand and more takeaways from Georgia, via The Athletic

Expected Win Total Analysis: After Georgia

It’s Post-Game Monday, which means that it’s time to re-assess our expected win totals in light of what happened this past weekend. You can submit your own ballot at the GRT Expected Win Total Machine page.

My assessment

I’m writing this early Sunday morning, so what I’m writing may be a bit amplified by the proximity to yesterday’s disappointment.

My expected win total for this season is now 5.45.

Here’s how I’ve tracked this season:

  • Preseason: 5.4
  • After beating South Carolina: 5.8
  • After beating Missouri: No analysis, but would have gone up
  • After the loss to Georgia: 5.45

Details: I have Florida at 20%, Alabama at 25%, A&M and Auburn at 45%, Kentucky and Arkansas at 60%, and Vanderbilt at 90%.

Here’s a table with my expectations this week:

Tennessee Volunteers currently

Current record: 2-1, 2nd in the SEC East

I’m sure I’m no different than most Vols fans in that I was feeling pretty good about Tennessee after wins over South Carolina and Missouri. I didn’t think the Vols would beat Georgia, but I did think it wouldn’t feel like a replay of the past several years. In the first half, it didn’t feel like that, as the offense appeared to be doing just enough to hang with the Bulldogs and maybe even win and the defense was frustrating Georgia’s offense.

But Georgia’s superb defense was just too much in the second half, having its way with Tennessee’s talented offensive line over and over and over again while the Vols’ defense slowly gave out.

I’m cautioning myself not to overreact too much. Georgia is a national title contender, after all, and if Tennessee can still take care of business against the SEC East’s second tier, it still has plenty of opportunities (Alabama, Florida) to maybe get one of those elusive wins against elite teams. And even without that, there’s room to grow with additional opportunities against teams like A&M and Auburn that appear to be somewhere in between the elite and the SEC East’s second tier.

The question, of course, is whether I think any of that is actually reasonable. At this point, I do, although my certainty about it has waned significantly after this weekend.

Bottom line: I’m only slightly more concerned about the Vols themselves this week than I was last week.

The Vols’ future opponents

Kentucky Wildcats

Current record: 1-2, 4th in the SEC East

I’m feeling worse about the Kentucky Wildcats, and not just because they had six (!) interceptions this weekend. After watching Ole Miss score almost at will against Alabama last night, that one-point loss in overtime to the Rebels is looking pretty good as well. I’m moving them from 70% to 60%.

Alabama Crimson Tide

Current record: 3-0, 1st in the SEC West

Again, I’m not sure whether last night’s back-and-forth with Ole Miss is more credit to Lane Kiffin or concern about Alabama’s defense. For now, I’m splitting the difference on that. So, I’m feeling slightly better about Alabama this week. Sure, they also scored 63 points, but it’s beginning to become clear that Ole Miss can’t stop anybody so maybe that’s not quite as impressive as it seems. I’m moving the Tide from 20% to 25%.

Arkansas Razorbacks

Current record: 1-2, 4th in the SEC West

Arkansas would have beaten Auburn if not for a botched call that replay wasn’t able to overturn. I’m feeling much worse about these guys. They no longer seem like the Vanderbilt of the West; they look like either a member of the second tier in the SEC East or, gulp, like us. I’m moving them to 60% and just below Kentucky.

Texas A&M

Current record: 2-1, 2nd in the SEC West

A&M exposed Florida’s problems on defense. Whether that means they are finally now who we thought they were preseason, I don’t know. I do know that I feel worse about them today than I did two days ago. I’m moving them from 50% to 45%.

Auburn Tigers

Current record: 2-1, 2nd in the SEC West

See Arkansas above. Auburn lost this on a botched snap that Bo Nix then attempted to spike backward, basically making it a lateral. Arkansas recovered, but the refs on the field got it wrong, and the rules say that replay couldn’t correct it, probably because the whistle blew and players stopped playing. Still, the Tigers are dangerous. I’m feeling like these guys are essentially the same as Texas A&M, so I’m making both of them 45% and giving the Tigers the edge.

Vanderbilt Commodores

Current record: 0-3, 7th in the SEC East

See South Carolina above. No change in perception of the ‘Dores: 90%.

Florida Gators

Current record: 2-1, 2nd in the SEC East

See A&M above. I’m not sure whether to credit A&M for the win or be a little less concerned about the Gators because of their defense. Bottom line, I think I feel a little less concerned about them this week than last. That offense is really good, but yes, the defense does make them vulnerable. I’m keeping them at 20% and making them the most difficult game remaining due to dropping Alabama to 25%.

The Vols’ past opponents

South Carolina Gamecocks

Current record: 1-2, 4th in the SEC East

South Carolina basically did what it was supposed to do against Vanderbilt this week. That means no change in perception and no impact on perception of Tennessee for me.

Missouri Tigers

Current record: 1-2, 4th in the SEC East

Who knows whether Missouri beating LSU says more about Missouri or more about LSU? I feel maybe slightly better about Tennessee now that Missouri has beaten LSU, but I wonder if LSU is just as much of a mess as I thought they would be preseason. Of course, I also thought the Georgia offense would struggle and I appear to have been wrong about that, so maybe Missouri deserves more credit than I’m giving them.

Georgia

Current record: 3-0, 1st in the SEC East

We’ll see how Georgia does against Alabama next week. I really thought their offense would struggle more this season and that Tennessee’s offensive line would be closer to an even match against that defense than it turned out to be.

What about you? Where are your expectations for the Vols now? You can post your current thoughts and details here, but don’t forget to submit your ballot to the GRT Win Total Machine.

Tennessee Vols statistical ranking trends – After Week 6

Here’s our weekly color-coded look at how the Vols’ national rankings are trending in each of the official NCAA stat categories. The word of warning continues this week: With the pandemic causing conferences and teams to start their respective seasons at different times, what used to rank 130 or so teams is currently ranking only 75.

Offense

If the table above doesn’t display well, try using this link.

Currently doing well: Passes had intercepted, 4th down conversion percentage, tackles for loss allowed, red zone offense, completion percentage

Took a hit this week: Rushing offense fell all the way from No. 24 to No. 66, sacks allowed fell from No. 31 to No. 60, and passing yards per completion went from No. 26 to No. 48

Currently needs improvement: 3rd down conversion percentage, rushing offense, total offense, sacks allowed, first downs offense, passing offense

Defense

If the table above doesn’t display well, try using this link.

Currently doing well: Defensive TDs, first downs defense, 4th down conversion percentage defense

Took a hit this week: First downs offense went from No. 10 to No. 26, scoring defense went from No. 17 to No. 37. Total defense and rushing defense also fell this week.

Improved this week: 4th down conversion percentage defense

Currently needs improvement: With only about 75 teams ranked, No. 50 and below would qualify as the basement in this exercise, and even after playing Georgia, the Vols are not there in any given defensive category, which is good.

Special Teams

If the table above doesn’t display well, try using this link.

Currently doing well: Punt returns, punt return defense, net punting, kickoff returns

Took a hit this week: Kickoff return defense

Improved this week: Net punting and punt return defense

Currently needs improvement: Kickoff return defense

Turnovers and Penalties

If the table above doesn’t display well, try using this link.

Currently doing well: Turnovers lost, which, after losing three to Georgia tells you how much of an aberration that was so far in this early season. Also, fumbles recovered.

Took a hit this week: Everything in the penalty department. The Vols were all green heading into this game and ended up committing 10 penalties for 84 yards.

Improved this week: Fumbles recovered. Hurray for small sample sizes.

Appears to need improvement: Nothing is terrible here, but the Vols certainly lost their edge in both penalties and turnovers this week against the Bulldogs.

Hunters Horrible Picks wins Week 6 of the 2020 GRT Pick ‘Em

Congratulations to Hunters Horrible Picks, who finished first in Week 6 of the 2020 GRT Pick ‘Em with a not-horrible record of 14-6 and 178 confidence points.

Here are the full results for this week:

Rank Player W-L Points Tiebreaker
1 Hunters Horrible Picks 14-6 178 17-12
2 Will Shelton 15-5 172 20-16
3 Jayyyy 13-7 167 13-20
4 MariettaVol1 13-7 161 23-37**
4 Anaconda 14-6 161 14-28
6 crafdog 15-5 159 20-31
7 Jahiegel 13-7 157 14-30
8 tmfountain14 13-7 155 14-41**
8 keeps corn in a jar 14-6 155 14-28
8 birdjam 13-7 155 17-24
11 Hjohn 13-7 154 21-35
12 ga26engr 13-7 152 17-34**
12 rollervol 12-8 152 24-21
14 Krusher 12-8 151 21-38**
14 jfarrar90 11-9 151 21-24
16 ltvol99 12-8 150 24-27**
16 BlountVols 13-7 150 32-28
18 GeorgeMonkey 11-9 149 17-27
19 PAVolFan 14-6 148 21-31
20 Picks of Someone 13-7 147 24-31**
20 LuckyGuess 13-7 147 17-27
20 TennRebel 12-8 147 17-23
20 Raven17 12-8 147 35-34
20 ChuckieTVol 12-8 147 27-24
25 cnyvol 12-8 146 27-24**
25 PensacolaVolFan 12-8 146 20-10
27 joeb_1 11-9 145 23-35**
27 spartans100 12-8 145 24-28
27 Joel @ GRT 12-8 145 10-27
27 Tennmark 11-9 145 20-17
31 Knottfair 12-8 143 24-31**
31 Neil 11-9 143 24-21
33 boro wvvol 10-10 139 24-21
34 patmd 12-8 137 20-34**
34 C_hawkfan 10-10 137 10-30
36 DinnerJacket 12-8 136 10-24
37 Bulldog 85 10-10 133 24-20**
37 tcarroll90 11-9 133 21-20
39 Timbuktu126 10-10 128 22-14
40 ddayvolsfan 12-8 116 21-31**
40 vols95 11-9 116 17-27
42 HUTCH 8-12 95 28-31
43 volfan28 8-12 83 24-35
44 Rossboro 0-20 0 0-0**
44 memphispete 0-20 0 -
44 Jackson Irwin 0-20 0 -
44 ctull 0-20 0 -
44 TennVol95 in 3D! 0-20 0 -
44 shensle6 0-20 0 -
44 Fowler877 0-20 0 -
44 OriginalVol1814 0-20 0 -
44 HOTTUB 0-20 0 -
44 GasMan 0-20 0 -
44 Wilk21 0-20 0 -
44 ed75 0-20 0 -
44 rsbrooks25 0-20 0 -

Season Standings

With that performance, Hunters Horrible Picks also takes the lead with 543 points and a record of 55-25. Here’s the full list:

Rank Player W-L Points Tiebreaker
1 Hunters Horrible Picks 55-25 68.75 543
2 Will Shelton 53-27 66.25 537
3 Anaconda 54-26 67.50 533
4 birdjam 56-24 70.00 531
5 Hjohn 53-27 66.25 529
6 jfarrar90 53-27 66.25 527
6 BlountVols 58-22 72.50 527
8 PAVolFan 56-24 70.00 525
9 LuckyGuess 54-26 67.50 523
10 GeorgeMonkey 54-26 67.50 522
11 Jahiegel 50-30 62.50 517
12 ChuckieTVol 50-30 62.50 516
13 spartans100 56-24 70.00 514
14 Bulldog 85 50-30 62.50 511
15 joeb_1 48-32 60.00 510
16 keeps corn in a jar 49-31 61.25 509
17 Knottfair 50-30 62.50 505
17 crafdog 57-23 71.25 505
17 Joel @ GRT 52-28 65.00 505
20 tmfountain14 52-28 65.00 504
21 Jayyyy 42-38 52.50 503
22 TennRebel 50-30 62.50 501
23 Raven17 51-29 63.75 499
24 ltvol99 52-28 65.00 498
25 Krusher 50-30 62.50 496
25 ga26engr 53-27 66.25 496
27 boro wvvol 43-37 53.75 489
28 MariettaVol1 46-34 57.50 488
29 rollervol 53-27 66.25 485
30 PensacolaVolFan 52-28 65.00 477
31 DinnerJacket 48-32 60.00 476
31 cnyvol 44-36 55.00 476
33 Tennmark 44-36 55.00 475
34 tcarroll90 43-37 53.75 457
35 patmd 53-27 66.25 456
36 C_hawkfan 45-35 56.25 455
37 ddayvolsfan 54-26 67.50 454
38 Timbuktu126 47-33 58.75 437
39 Picks of Someone 37-43 46.25 415
40 Neil 15-65 18.75 397
41 HUTCH 18-62 22.50 364
42 volfan28 41-39 51.25 362
43 vols95 25-55 31.25 343
44 memphispete 20-60 25.00 312
45 Wilk21 25-55 31.25 309
46 TennVol95 in 3D! 28-52 35.00 298
47 Fowler877 15-65 18.75 265
48 ed75 3-77 3.75 249
48 ctull 3-77 3.75 249
48 HOTTUB 3-77 3.75 249
51 Jackson Irwin 1-79 1.25 244
52 OriginalVol1814 0-80 0.00 240
52 GasMan 0-80 0.00 240
52 rsbrooks25 0-80 0.00 240
52 shensle6 0-80 0.00 240
56 Rossboro 0-80 0.00 0

Week 6 of the 2020 GRT Guessing Game: It’s raining blue shells and JWheel101 takes the lead

Here’s the play-by-play for this week’s Guessing Game.

Week 6 – Georgia

Round 1

Q: Which team rushes for more net yards? (50 points available)

A: Georgia 50 points (Georgia 193, Tennessee -1; oof)

These folks get 50 points for the right answer:

  • LTVol99
  • HixsonVol
  • hounddog3
  • Harley
  • Jayyyy
  • Josh Farrar
  • Mitchell K
  • JWheel101

Mushrooms (30 points): Harley and Sam Hensley

Bananas (-30 points): Josh Farrar and LTVol99

Blue shells and bolts: 

  • Blue Shell No. 2 (launched by Sam Hensley): BLOWS UP and takes out hounddog3 (-50 points)
  • Blue Shell No. 3 (launched by Sam Hensley): Counter 1
  • Blue Shell No. 4 (launched by Bulldog85): Counter 4
  • New Blue Shell No. 5 (launched by Sam Hensley): Counter 5
  • No bolts

Top 10 after Round 1:

  1. hounddog3 (190)
  2. Harley (180)
  3. JWheel101 (150)
  4. Isaac Bishop (130)
  5. Raven17 (110)
  6. Will Shelton (110)
  7. Josh Farrar (110)
  8. LTVol99 (100)
  9. Mitchell K (80)
  10. Joel Hollingsworth (50)

Round 2

Q: What happens first? (30-50 points available)

A: Georgia gives up the first turnover (30 points); Georgia fumbles (50 points)

Nobody picked Georgia fumbling and the 50 points, but these players picked Georgia giving up the first turnover and got the safe points (30):

  • Raven17
  • Mitchell K
  • Jayyyy

Mushrooms (30 points): JWheel101 and Sam Hensley

Bananas (-30 points): Raven17 and Will Shelton

Blue shells and bolts: 

  • Blue Shell No. 3 (launched by Sam Hensley): BLOWS UP and takes out hounddog3 (again) (-50 points)
  • Blue Shell No. 4 (launched by Bulldog85): Counter 3
  • Blue Shell No. 5 (launched by Sam Hensley): Counter 4
  • No new blue shells
  • Sam Hensley throws a bolt and gets 100 points

Top 10 after Round 2:

  1. Harley (180)
  2. JWheel101 (180)
  3. hounddog3 (140)
  4. Isaac Bishop (130)
  5. Sam Hensley (130)
  6. Raven17 (110)
  7. Josh Farrar (110)
  8. Mitchell K (110)
  9. LTVol99 (100)
  10. Will Shelton (80)

Round 3

Q: In two games, the Georgia defense is allowing an average of only 8 points per game. How many do the Vols get? (30-80 points available)

A: 21-24 (50 points) (The Vols got 21 points)

The following players got this one right and got 50 points for it:

  • JWheel101
  • hounddog3
  • Isaac Bishop
  • Raven17
  • Josh Farrar
  • LTVol99
  • Joel Hollingsworth

Mushrooms (30 points): hounddog3 and Joel Hollingsworth

Bananas (-30 points): Isaac Bishop and Jayyyy

Blue shells and bolts: 

  • Blue Shell No. 4 (launched by Bulldog85): Counter 2
  • Blue Shell No. 5 (launched by Sam Hensley): Counter 3
  • New Blue Shell No. 6 (launched by HixsonVol): Counter 5
  • No bolts

Final Standings After Week 6:

Rank Player Points
1 JWheel101 230
2 hounddog3 220
3 Harley 180
4 Raven17 160
5 Josh Farrar 160
6 Isaac Bishop 150
7 LTVol99 150
8 Sam Hensley 130
9 Joel Hollingsworth 130
10 Mitchell K 110
11 Will Shelton 80
12 Jayyyy 50
13 HixsonVol 50
14 Evan 33
15 chris weatherly 0
16 Bulldog85 0
17 RockyTop5 0

Georgia 44 Tennessee 21: No Straight Lines

Throughout the off-season and especially with a 10-game SEC schedule, we’ve talked about Tennessee’s final record being a less reliable indicator of progress this year. Instead, how about, “Do we have a chance to win every week?”

Did Tennessee have a chance to win today? Not when it turns the ball over three times in the second half. Not against Georgia.

It might be tempting to cut this game in half, but we need the data from all four quarters. For a time, Tennessee was wearing out the underdog playbook: defensive touchdown, make them kick field goals, a pair of fourth down stops. It felt like the kind of game Georgia might regret.

But then, Georgia wore Tennessee out. Literally: the Dawgs snapped it 77 times, the Vols 63, with a dozen of those on the final drive. The Vol defense, heroic deep into the afternoon, was asked to do far too much too often. And Georgia, despite running a less efficient version of it early, got to play their game: limit turnovers, lean on you offensively, and let that defense do the damage.

All of these things are true at the same time:

  • Georgia might have the best defense in the country. They do in SP+, by a significant margin, and that may only grow next week.
  • Tennessee’s offensive line got a reality check. I’ll be curious to see where they go from here, but their ceiling was not as high as it needed to be to beat Georgia, plain and simple. Ty Chandler and Eric Gray ran 16 times for 36 yards (2.25 per carry).
  • Tennessee’s passing game shares the blame. It includes Jarrett Guarantano, but is not his exclusively. JG was sensational in the first half, then self-destructive on Tennessee’s first two turnovers in the second. On the third, I’m not sure what he’s supposed to do when the backs fail to pick up the blitz like that. Guarantano was part of the problem, but there’s plenty of blame to go around.

How many of those problems will show up when we’re not playing Georgia? Ask Alabama in two weeks.

I said on the radio on Friday that it felt like these Vols skipped a step: all that winning to get back to a game like this, but now you’re playing it at #3 Georgia instead of against, say, #21 Texas A&M or #13 Auburn. Those chances will come. We’ll see if the full picture of this team will still look like progress; that starts with Kentucky next week, and will still include plenty of chances for meaningful wins. If Georgia falls at Alabama next week, the Vols can still hang out in the SEC East conversation, thanks in part to Texas A&M’s win today.

We’ve mentioned this stat a bunch, and it’s painfully worth repeating: since 2001, only the 2015 Vols haven’t lost a three-possession game. Those typically come from being too far behind in talent. That’s true with Georgia; credit Tennessee, particularly its defense, for giving itself a chance for a long time today. But when those chances ran out, Georgia ran by us again.

Progress is not a straight line, though we thought it might look that way for a minute or two today. We’ll see what it looks like next week.