Tennessee football still a big draw with seven of outlet’s top 100 games for 2022

They aren’t expected to compete for the SEC Championship this year, and they finished last year unranked and barely above .500. Still, Tennessee football remains a big draw entering Josh Heupel’s second season on the job, and that’s shown by the number of games deemed intriguing.

Seven UT games this year were named on the top 100 games of 2022 by Brandon Marcello of 247Sports. The Vols were one of only five teams to have that many games on the list, and they finished tied with three others for second behind the LSU Tigers, who had eight games.

One of those games for both teams was Tennessee football’s trip to LSU at No. 49. The other three teams to have seven were the Alabama Crimson Tide, Arkansas Razorbacks and Oregon Ducks. Yes, UT and Alabama at No. 40 was another one for both teams.

What’s crazy about Rocky Top being so high up is the fact that they didn’t have any top 25 games. They also didn’t have any bottom 25 games. They just have a bunch of middle of the road games that make up the majority of their schedule and are worth tuning into.

Leading the list was their matchup with the Florida Gators at No. 26. Their visit to the Pittsburgh Panthers was No. 44, and their visit to the South Carolina Gamecocks was No. 60. The Kentucky Wildcats came in at No. 70, and the Georgia Bulldogs came in at No. 74.

As a result, every Power Five game for the Vols made the list except their matchups with the Missouri Tigers and Vanderbilt Commodores. That speaks volumes to the type of interest they are drawing as a program right now.

Even among the top 50, Tennessee football was tied for the fifth most games. They joined six other teams, all of whom had four apiece. Ahead of them were Alabama with seven and then LSU, the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Ole Miss Rebels, all with five apiece.

Also on that list were Arkansas, Florida, the Clemson Tigers, the Texas Longhorns, the Texas A&M Aggies and the Utah Utes. Again, the Vols’ matchup with the Gators helped put both teams on the top 50 list the same way it helped UT moved up this list in general.

You could make the argument that mediocrity is helping to draw these games, claiming the Vols are just mediocre enough to make Kentucky and South Carolina interesting. However, they would still then have to be just good enough to make Alabama and Georgia interesting.

Maybe that’s why they hit that sweet spot. After all, Arkansas and LSU aren’t exactly considered national title contenders this year, and they were in that top five. Oregon was too and is undergoing a coaching change.

Still, all of those programs have had more recent success than Tennessee football, so excitement behind what Heupel is building has to have had some role in it. It’s pretty clear among fans on Rocky Top this program is a draw once again.