Tennessee moved up 5 spots in ESPN’s updated power rankings following Week 11, which were updated on Sunday morning.

The Vols flew up the board from No. 9 to No. 4 following a chaotic weekend across the country. Their rise was due to both their performance on Saturday against Mississippi State and the struggles from several other teams in the top 10.

Tennessee jumped ahead of Miami, Georgia, Indiana, Penn State and BYU this week. Here’s some analysis from ESPN’s Eli Lederman:

The health of quarterback Nico Iamaleava looms large for the Volunteers, who are chasing their first playoff berth. Tennessee rolled past Mississippi State on Saturday behind a career-best 149 rushing yards from Dylan Sampson, but the focus stayed on Iamaleava in its 33-14 victory after the second-year passer exited with an upper-body injury in the second quarter and did not return after halftime.

Tennessee coach Josh Heupel has already confirmed that Iamaleava’s absence in the second half was precautionary and that he’s expected to be full-go this week against Georgia.

With a win over the Bulldogs on Saturday, Tennessee would be close to clinching its first-ever College Football Playoff berth. The Vols are also in position to compete in the SEC Championship Game if they win out.

Tennessee is only behind Oregon, Ohio State and Texas in this week’s power rankings, per ESPN.

Attention Tennessee residents! Here’s Saturday Down South’s breakdown of all the best Tennessee betting apps to help you get in on the action today!

Spenser Davis

Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.