Tennessee head coach Butch Jones set a goal for his team to make the postseason in 2014. The Vols earned a TaxSlayer Bowl berth, then defeated Iowa, 45-28, to end their season with a 7-6 record.

The outcome wasn’t much of a surprise for fans who expected a slight improvement from last year’s 5-7 finish, but was still enough progress for Jones to earn more credibility for his “brick by brick” rebuilding process. However, Tennessee could have finished with an even better record, falling short in several winnable games.

Here’s a look at the Vols’ five most important losses of 2014:

1. Florida, 10-9: This could have been the year that Tennessee ended its losing streak to Florida. The Vols defense dominated the Gators’ offense through three quarters before Will Muschamp replaced Jeff Driskel with Treon Harris. Harris led Florida to 10 unanswered points as Tennessee’s offense failed to score a single touchdown. The Gators extended their annual streak to 10 consecutive wins and will host next year’s matchup.

2. Missouri, 29-21: There were no excuses for the Vols’ Week 13 loss. Joshua Dobbs had already settled in as starting quarterback and Tennessee had momentum coming off a two-game winning streak. The Vols were just outplayed by a Missouri team riding its own four-game streak en route to an inevitable SEC East title. Tennessee did make a late push and almost completed a successful comeback after a shaky start to the second half. But the Vols fell short after a questionable onside kick ruling gave the Tigers possession with less than two minutes remaining. For Tennessee, the loss was the difference in finishing the season with two-game winning streak, rather than five. All things considered, the Vols would have earned a better bowl game after playing spoiler to the Tigers’ SEC East title chances and earned more consideration for going undefeated with Dobbs as the starting quarterback.

3. Georgia, 35-32: Like Florida, Georgia entered with a four-game annual winning streak and was favored at home. But the young Tennessee team battled in its second road game of 2014, keeping the score close throughout. Former starter Justin Worley suffered an injury in the third quarter, with Nathan Peterman — not Dobbs, who was set to redshirt — providing nothing to a suddenly pedestrian offense. Worley returned in the fourth and threw a touchdown to cut the Vols’ deficit, but it was too late as Georgia earned its fifth consecutive victory.

4. Alabama, 34-20: Tennessee’s loss to Alabama was the turning point of its season. The Tide held a 14-0 lead before Dobbs made his debut on the Vols’ third offensive possession. Alabama added another score before Tennessee’s offense began to see life. After falling behind by 21, the Vols outscored the Tide 20-13 for the remainder of the contest. Dobbs breathed new life into Tennessee’s struggling offense and went on to lead the team to a 4-1 record.

5. Oklahoma, 34-10: In September, this loss seemed less disappointing than it does now. At the time, Oklahoma looked like a potential national championship contender, ranking No. 4 overall thanks to a strong pass attack, running game and pass rush that pressured Worley more than 10 times in Week 3. But in hindsight, the Sooners were one of the most disappointing teams of 2014, finishing with an 8-5 record and suffering a 40-6 Russell Athletic Bowl loss to No. 17 Clemson.