Tennessee football No. 25 in preseason AP Poll

The Associated Press top 25 rankings included the Tennessee football Volunteers.

After coming in one spot out of the Preseason Coaches Poll at No. 26, other preseason rankings have been more favorable to Tennessee football. One of those now involves the most recognizable preseason poll there is.

Yes, the Vols came in at No. 25 in the Preseason AP Poll, one spot ahead of the Memphis Tigers. These rankings included the schools from conferences, along with independents, who have postponed fall sports. If the rankings were adjusted, UT would come in at No. 16.

Other SEC schools joining Rocky Top in the top 25 were the Alabama Crimson Tide at No. 3, the Georgia Bulldogs at No. 4, the LSU Tigers at No. 6, the Florida Gators at No. 8, the Auburn Tigers at No. 11 and the Texas A&M Aggies at No. 13. The Clemson Tigers were ranked No. 1.

Of course, Tennessee football plays every SEC school on that list in 2020 except for LSU. The Vols would have played the Oklahoma Sooners, who are ranked No. 5, and not Auburn or Texas A&M, had the original pre-coronavirus schedule remained in place.

As a result, though, things got much more difficult despite the hype behind these rankings. Also, when adjusted, the Kentucky Wildcats enter the poll at No. 22. That makes the schedule look even more difficult on paper.

Last year, UT finished with an 8-5 record and on a six-game winning streak. Because of this, they received eight votes apiece in the final AP and Coaches polls, coming in at No. 34 and No. 35 in them respectively. That is what generated a good bit of hype behind them entering this year.

However, while they are expected to be better this year, the schedule, as we have shown, is expected to be much worse. Tennessee football will have a tough road trying to match last year’s success, but if Jeremy Pruitt’s third team lives up to expectations, even in such an unusual year, the hype behind the program will be through the roof entering 2021.