Tennessee rises in ESPN’s power rankings after Week 9 blowout win at Kentucky
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Tennessee boasts the nation’s No. 2 scoring offense at 45.6 points per game. The Volunteers lit up the scoreboard once again in Week 9 behind a 56-34 win over Kentucky, the third game this season they’ve scored at least 56 points.
ESPN’s power rankings after Week 9’s action saw the Vols jump up several spots, coming in at No. 15 after being ranked No. 18 a week prior. While they have yet to score fewer than 34 points in a game this season, their defense hasn’t lived up to its part of the bargain. Their 30.9 points allowed per game is in the bottom 25 in FBS. They’re also second-from-last in the SEC in total defense.
Bill Connelly made mention of Tennessee‘s leaky defense, while praising the way it stopped the run against Kentucky:
[D]efense is an obvious Achilles heel. Kentucky’s Cutter Boley threw for 330 yards and five touchdowns, and the Vols’ pass rush, a strength to date, managed just one sack. If there was a bright spot, however — besides the win — it’s that an inefficient run defense stepped up, allowing just 3.7 yards per carry to Kentucky running backs.
At 6-2, the Vols are hardly out of the College Football Playoff race. But they face two possible resume builders down the stretch in No. 18 Oklahoma and No. 9 Vanderbilt, and may need to win both. In fact, with Florida and New Mexico State coming up as well, Tennessee may need to run the table to seal a second-straight Playoff berth.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
