Tennessee football schedule named among SEC’s toughest. It’s not.
If you were to base the 2022 Tennessee football schedule on recent program success and hype behind the future of different programs, the Vols may have the toughest slate in the nation. That perception is leading many analysts to say they have among the league’s hardest schedules.
Barrett Sallee of CBS Sports said that with the visit to the Pittsburgh Panthers on the slate, Rocky Top has the fourth toughest schedule among teams in the SEC this year. In addition to Pitt, the one Power Five foe the Vols have that they don’t have every year is a visit to the LSU Tigers.
Ahead of UT are the Arkansas Razorbacks at No. 3, the Vanderbilt Commodores at No. 2 and the Auburn Tigers at No. 1. They are one spot ahead of the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Here’s what Sallee wrote about Tennessee football’s schedule.
"Second-year coach Josh Heupel has one of the most dynamic offenses in the country, and he’s going to need it quite often based on how his schedule is laid out. The Volunteers visit defending ACC champion Pittsburgh in Week 2, have a rotating SEC game in Death Valley against LSU, have to visit Georgia in November and have road games in three of their final four contests. They will be a trendy pick to threaten Georgia in the SEC East, but it won’t be easy based on this slate of games."
On paper, Pitt and LSU may seem like rough draws. However, context matters. While LSU is a future dynasty in the making under Brian Kelly, they are coming off a 6-7 season, and they will definitely have to deal with first-year transitions under Kelly.
Meanwhile, Pitt is having to replace Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison, its top quarterback and receiver. The Vols lost to them by just a touchdown last year, and it was the first game Hendon Hooker played significant minutes. They likely would’ve won if it were later in the season.
Given that fact, despite them having to travel to Pitt, they should have the advantage this year. We should note that they face LSU in the first half of the season as well, so they’ll still be adjusting to Kelly’s system, particularly what he runs on offense.
As a result, it’s an overestimation to think Tennessee football has the fourth toughest schedule in the SEC. There are quite a few other teams that have tougher schedules, including non-conference games and their draws from the other division.
Why don’t we just start with the team behind the Vols, Mississippi State? Okay, the Arizona Wildcats were horrendous last year, but the gap between them and Pitt will be narrower this year. Meanwhile, MSU also plays the Memphis Tigers, one of the best Group of Five schools, they play in the tougher division, and their SEC East draw is the Georgia Bulldogs.
Speaking of that, what about Georgia? They face the Oregon Ducks, who may have a first-year head coach but were an elite team last year, and they visit Mississippi State, and honestly, at least this year, MSU may be a better team than LSU.
Finally, you have the South Carolina Gamecocks. Sorry, but this one’s clear-cut. They have to visit Arkansas, a tougher draw than LSU for this year specifically, and their non-conference foe, as it always is, will be the Clemson Tigers. Despite what happened last year, Clemson will be better than Pitt this year.
Now, it is true that even with Pitt taking a step back, Rocky Top has a tougher Power Five foe than most schools. Drawing Alabama makes things tough every year too. Still, you have to look at the SEC slate and the Group of Five foes.
Next. 10 Vols who should already be in CFB HoF. dark
Taking that into account Tennessee football’s schedule is middle of the pack. That’s particularly the case with how bad their two Group of Five foes, the Ball State Cardinals and Akron Zips are. Those are two MAC teams that went 6-7 and 2-10 respectively last year. This is why there is cautious optimism surrounding the program.