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Tennessee football: Ranking games on Vols 2019 schedule by importance

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Head coach Jeremy Pruitt of the Tennessee Volunteers brings his team onto the field prior to a game against 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)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 08: Head coach Jeremy Pruitt of the Tennessee Volunteers brings his team onto the field prior to a game against 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 John Sommers II/Getty Images
Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images /

11. Georgia State Panthers

They’re not an FCS squad, and they have a future as a program under head coach Shawn Elliott. But the Georgia State Panthers are still a team that should be extremely easy for Tennessee football heading into this year.

Again, like Chattanooga, losing to them would be devastating. But this is only slightly more important than the Chattanooga game, and the difference, outside of GSU technically being in the FBS, is the fact that this game is the opener.

UT’s 3:30 p.m. Saturday showdown with the Panthers on Aug. 31 will give us a first glimpse of what kind of team they could have. That alone makes this an important outing and one that Jeremy Pruitt somewhat needs to focus on.

However, it still falls down to No. 11 on this list because it requires little focus. Georgia State went 2-10 last year, in Elliott’s second season, and while they figure to be a bit better this year, their projections could still be as low as two wins again.

As a result, GSU is one of those extremely easy Group of Five FBS schools that is almost like an FCS school, so the Vols don’t need too much focus to win this game. That is why it is next to last on this list.

A win here proves nothing for Rocky Top, but a loss does indeed give cause for panic immediately. So this is definitely a can’t-lose game, but we don’t look at it as a must-win game because this should be circled as an automatic win. Not being able to do so would mean much bigger problems.

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