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Tennessee football’s 2022 schedule: Ranking games by importance

By Caleb Calhoun

Sep 1, 2018; Charlotte, NC, USA; A Tennessee Volunteers helmet is seen pregame before the game against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 1, 2018; Charlotte, NC, USA; A Tennessee Volunteers helmet is seen pregame before the game against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 10, 2018; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers helmets on the sidelines against the Virginia Tech Hokies during the first quarter at Heinz Field. Pittsburgh won 52-22. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 10, 2018; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers helmets on the sidelines against the Virginia Tech Hokies during the first quarter at Heinz Field. Pittsburgh won 52-22. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

5. At Pittsburgh Panthers

Saturday, Sept. 10; Acrisure Stadium; Pittsburgh, Pa.

It’s a non-conference game, but very few matchups will define Tennessee football’s season early more than this one. If the Vols can beat the Pittsburgh Panthers on the road in the second week of the season, they’ll begin SEC play with a 3-0 record and a Florida Gators team coming to town that they have every reason to believe they’ll beat this year.

Simply put, morale at that point will be through the roof. However, if they lose that game, then morale could hold them back a bit when facing Florida. Look, the Vols turned out to be better than Florida last year, but that loss to Pitt hurt their confidence in The Swamp.

You can’t underestimate the role morale plays in these things. Now, despite losing to Pitt last year, the Vols started Joe Milton III in that game, and this is a different Pitt team. They lost Kenny Pickett and Jordan Addison, the best quarterback-receiver combination in the nation.

There is still plenty of talent for Pitt, but this year seems to be more like a rebuilding season, so there is plenty of reason to believe Josh Heupel’s team can pull off the win here. Doing that will really set the stage for the next few weeks after that, so this toss-up game is huge.

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