SEC Power Rankings following Week 6 of 2018: Bye doesn't help Vols

SEC Power Rankings following Week 6 of 2018: Bye doesn’t help Vols at all

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Tennessee mascot Davy Crockett carries the flag across the end zone during a game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers at Neyland Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennesee won the game 59-3. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /

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Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images /

Sorry Vol Nation, but Rocky Top still belongs at the bottom of our SEC Power Rankings. You can mention the fact that the Arkansas Razorbacks have a worse record all you want. The fact is, halfway though the season, Jeremy Pruitt’s team has yet to beat an FBS team that has won a game.

Yes, there two wins are against the FCS ETSU Bucs and also the low-level UTEP Miners, who are on an 18-game losing streak. Even if you say the same applies to Arkansas, the Vols take it one level worse: They have yet to not get blown out by an FBS team that has won a game.

In its other three games against legitimate teams, the Vols have lost them all by 26 points each. So here’s a new goal: try actually staying in a game against a team that is not the bottom of the barrel in college football before getting out of the cellar of the SEC. Until then, we’re going to have to keep them here.

Coming off a bye, Pruitt’s team has a few major tests coming up. The Auburn Tigers and South Carolina Gamecocks on the road are brutal match-ups, and the Alabama Crimson Tide at home in between only makes things worse. Falling to 2-6 is likely, but just showing some competitiveness against Auburn is necessary before we show this team any love.

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