All for Tennessee
Fansided

SEC Power Rankings after Week 1 of 2019: Yes, Vols are tanking

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - AUGUST 31: The Tennessee Volunteers warm up before the season opener against the Georgia State Panthers at Neyland Stadium on August 31, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - AUGUST 31: The Tennessee Volunteers warm up before the season opener against the Georgia State Panthers at Neyland Stadium on August 31, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
8 of 15
Next
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images /

From tough losses to good Group of Five schools to ugly wins over Group of Five schools in general, the Kentucky Wildcats did just enough for us to put them ahead of these other teams in our SEC Power Rankings. But let’s be clear, Mark Stoops’s team should not be ashamed of how it looked against the Toledo Rockets.

Remember, UK lost everybody from last year. They lost their entire defense and their one offensive weapon in Benny Snell Jr. Meanwhile, Toledo returned everybody on offense entering Jason Candle’s fourth season and is a very dangerous Group of Five contender after going 7-6 in 2018. So there was no reason to believe this wouldn’t be ugly.

And ugly is exactly what it was. Kentucky pulled away, though, for a two-touchdown win, actually covering the spread. And the offense wasn’t half bad. Terry Wilson completed 19 of 26 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. They had 176 yards in total on the ground, led by maybe a new star in Kavosiey Smoke, who had seven carries for 78 yards and a touchdown.

Stoops has shown his ability to reload in the past, and he may do that again. We’ll know soon enough, though, given the layout of their upcoming schedule. Eastern Michigan comes to town next weekend, and then they host the Florida Gators before visiting the next team on this list.

Home/Vols Football