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Tennessee football: Ranking all 12 games by difficulty on Vols’ 2022 schedule

By Caleb Calhoun

Smokey and the Volunteer celebrate a touchdown during a NCAA football game against Tennessee Tech at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021.Kns Tennessee Tenn Tech Football
Smokey and the Volunteer celebrate a touchdown during a NCAA football game against Tennessee Tech at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021.Kns Tennessee Tenn Tech Football /
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Sep 18, 2021; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators mascots Albert Gator (right) and Alberta Gator against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 18, 2021; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators mascots Albert Gator (right) and Alberta Gator against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

5. Florida Gators

Saturday, Sept. 24; Neyland Stadium; Knoxville, Tenn.

Again, this defies what should be clear on paper. Tennessee football finished one game better than the Florida Gators last year. Florida is undergoing a coaching change, replacing Dan Mullen with Billy Napier. Meanwhile, the Vols get to face Florida at home. All signs should point to UT having the decisive edge over them.

However, the same way you don’t bet against the Vols when facing Kentucky, you don’t bet against Florida when facing the Vols. They have won 16 of the last 17 meetings, including five straight. No matter what the records are, Florida always has the advantage in this series, and that bumps up the difficulty of this game for UT.

Honestly, if you look at the way the program has invented ways to lose to them in the past, you could make the case that they should be higher on this list. However, if the Vols aren’t going to beat them this year, then they’ll never beat them again. That’s what keeps them down here.

This game is right before a bye, so there’s no team to look ahead to, and it’s right after they face Akron. As a result, they should be well-rested with no distractions. Taking that into account, the Vols finally owe Florida a dominant win here. There’s no reason they can’t get it done.

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