Tennessee football didn’t drop too far in Week 10 SEC Power Rankings

Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker (5) looks to pass during Tennessee's game against Georgia at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga., on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022.Kns Vols Georgia Bp
Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker (5) looks to pass during Tennessee's game against Georgia at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga., on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022.Kns Vols Georgia Bp
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Georgia linebacker Trezmen Marshall (15) celebrates after sacking Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker (5) during the second half of a NCAA college football game between Tennessee and Georgia in Athens, Ga., on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022. Georgia won 27-13.News Joshua L Jones
Georgia linebacker Trezmen Marshall (15) celebrates after sacking Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker (5) during the second half of a NCAA college football game between Tennessee and Georgia in Athens, Ga., on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022. Georgia won 27-13.News Joshua L Jones

Defeated Tennessee Volunteers 27-13

Is there any question about Kirby Smart’s team now? They struggled with the Kent State Golden Flashes and then Missouri, and they had a sloppy second half against Florida. That resulted in the College Football Playoff committee putting them at No. 3 and Tennessee football at No. 1 last week, even though they were No. 1 in the AP and Coaches Polls.

Then College GameDay came to town, and everybody on the crew outside of Luke Bryan, the guest speaker, picked the Vols to win. How did they respond? They won 27-13 in a game that wasn’t even that close. The Dawgs went into halftime up 24-6, and Kirby Smart spent the second half running clock to make sure the Vols couldn’t come back.

Now, this is the clear-cut No. 1 team in the nation, and it’s likely heading back to Atlanta. Georgia has far and away the two best wins of the year, over the Vols and the Oregon Ducks, and they blew both of those teams out. Maybe this is the historically great team we thought last year’s team was.

They can’t relax, though. The next two weeks for Georgia are visits to Mississippi State and Kentucky, two dangerous teams, and they have already played with fire at Mizzou. As a result, they haven’t clinched the East over Tennessee football yet. Anything can happen against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to close out the year too, so watch out.