Forgive us if we're overreacting a bit, but the new AP Top 25 rankings were posted on Tuesday afternoon and Tennessee football fans have every right to be a bit annoyed. In case you missed it, the Vols are now the No. 22 team in the country.
While it's always a positive when you're able to make a jump from week to week, the Vols were No. 24 in the preseason rankings - that alone was laughable. For Joey Aguilar and the Vols to look electric vs. Syracuse and only go up two spots... it doesn't make sense to us.
That's reason No. 1 people should be upset right now. Ready for reason No. 2 to be a bit livid with how things turned out? Well, it's that the No. 21 team in the country, one spot ahead of UT, are the Alabama Crimson Tide. Excuse us?
Tennessee football barely moves up in the new AP Top 25 rankings
BREAKING: College Football AP Poll🚨https://t.co/xSYsFdMXe5 pic.twitter.com/E7loVIHDJN
— On3 (@On3sports) September 2, 2025
Tennessee football ranked behind Alabama in the new AP Top 25 is absurd
Hey Kalen DeBoer, how much did you pay the voters to not only stay inside of the Top 25, but check in right ahead of the Vols? We'll double it. In all seriousness, this is something we really can't believe, as the Tide are coming off a nightmare Week 1.
On Saturday in Tallahassee, Alabama was a 14-point favorite going up against Florida State. All signs pointed to DeBoer and Co. leaving Doak Campbell Stadium with a convincing win. Well, the opposite of that turned out to be the case for the SEC powerhouse.
Alabama was DOMINATED on the road, with Florida State and Thomas Castellanos cruising to a 31-27 victory. Not only did Alabama suffer the loss, but now DeBoer's seat is hotter than ever. People all over Tuscaloosa have been calling for him to be fired since that defeat.
That's not the case for the Vols, however, as Aguilar looked brilliant in his debut with the team. Tennessee controlled the tempo against Syracuse and now another win should be on the way this weekend to improve to 2-0. We were hoping the Vols would be in the No. 17-19 range, but the voters saw things differently. They'll have to earn a sizable jump with their play on the field, but come on, there's no possible explanation for why Tennessee is behind Bama. Make it make sense.