Tennessee football: 5 reasons for excitement surrounding Vols offseason

6 of 6

Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images /

1. Tennessee football has a much easier schedule in 2019.

Beyond anything that should make 2019 easier than 2018 is Tennessee football’s easy schedule. Some data-based rankings had UT’s regular season schedule strength ranked No. 1 in 2018. It’ll be the opposite in 2019, as the Vols could honestly not have asked for a better draw in any way, and that alone should make a bowl game possible.

More from All for Tennessee

If Jeremy Pruitt had this out of conference schedule in 2017, he easily would have been 6-6 by avoiding the West Virginia Mountaineers. The Vols get their typical three easy games against the Georgia State Panthers, UAB Blazers and Chattanooga Mocs.

The Vols’ big-name out-of-conference team is 2019 the BYU Cougars, a team that went 7-6 in 2018, has to go to Knoxville and loses 10 starters. So those four games should easily be four wins next year.

When it comes to SEC play, the West draw is the Mississippi State Bulldogs at home. Facing them at home is more difficult than the Auburn Tigers on the road, whom the Vols just beat. And this is a Mississippi State team that loses over half of its starters on defense while having to replace all-everything quarterback Nick Fitzgerald on offense, so they should be a much easier game.

On top of that, a South Carolina Gamecocks team that barely beat the Vols in Columbia last year has to travel to Knoxville this season and has to replace its entire secondary, which is a big deal. Adding all this up, the Vols have a much easier path to six wins already.

They should then at least win one game against the Vanderbilt Commodores, Kentucky Wildcats and Missouri Tigers, and two wins would be ideal. But even with one, it becomes hard not to see this team getting seven wins, and eight is a real possibility even with the Georgia Bulldogs, Alabama Crimson Tide and Florida Gators on the schedule.

Next. 5 Vols most likely to benefit from Jim Chaney hire. dark

So Tennessee football gets to navigate a much easier schedule Jeremy Pruitt’s second season with a much healthier team this offseason, potentially up to 20 returning starters and numerous freshmen stars everywhere. That doesn’t include the upgrades they’ll get through recruiting. As a result, there are numerous reasons to believe this team will look significantly better, and that bodes well for the future on Rocky Top. The schedule alone leaves reason for major excitement.

Home/Vols Football