The Vols are looking to go bowling again, but they have to win one more game and only have one more opportunity to do so. PHOTO: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Even though the Vols lost to Missouri this past Saturday, they’re still only a win away from qualifying for a bowl bid for the first time since 2010. A 6-6 record may not be admirable from a larger historical perspective for Tennessee, but considering the Vols have had three straight 5-7 seasons and four straight losing seasons, making the postseason would be a step in the right direction in the short-term.
The only thing standing in the way between Tennessee and a bowl game is lowly Vanderbilt, who is coming off a 51-0 blowout loss against Mississippi State and is winless in the SEC. So assuming the Vols just take care of business, they should go bowling this season.
But since the best the Vols can finish is 6-6, that limits their bowl opportunities a bit more than if they had finished 7-5. But many sites still have them pegged for similar bowls with some extremely intriguing match-ups.
Here are the latest bowl projections from some notable sites:
ESPN’s Mark Schlabach
Music City Bowl (December 30 in Nashville, TN) vs. Miami Hurricanes
ESPN’s Brett McMurphy
Music City Bowl vs Iowa Hawkeyes
CBS Sports
Belk Bowl (December 30 in Charlotte, NC) vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Fox Sports
TaxSlayer Bowl (January 2 in Jacksonville, FL) vs. Minnesota Golden Gophers
SB Nation
Belk Bowl vs. Clemson Tigers
Sporting News
Heart of Dallas Bowl (December 26 in Dallas, TX) vs Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Some of these projections have still not updated from last week, but the new ones present some very interesting match-ups for the Vols.
Representatives from the Liberty Bowl and TaxSlayer Bowl were reportedly at this weekend’s game against Missouri.
Once some of the sites update their projections, the Liberty Bowl will likely be a top selection for the Vols. Several sights had them pegged in that bowl last week.
But a possible Notre Dame-Tennessee bowl game would be something to watch and would conjure up memories of yesteryear. Another good one would be a Miami-Tennessee bowl, harkening back to the 1985 Sugar Bowl (although neither team is as good as they were nearly 30 years ago).
The Vols will take any bowl they can get after missing out for three straight seasons, but a lower-tier bowl doesn’t rule out an intriguing match-up for Tennessee it seems.
Bowl projections gathered from ESPN, CBS Sports, Fox Sports, SB Nation, and Sporting News respectfully