New ESPN bowl projections for Tennessee are the last thing Vols fans want to see

The new College Football Playoff rankings are about to drop soon and Tennessee Volunteers fans everywhere are ready to see what happens. Following the loss to Georgia, there's plenty of speculation that the 8-2 Vols are going to be on the outside looking in for the Top 12.

From our chair, we think Tennessee still fully belongs in the CFP, but not everyone is seeing things that way. That includes ESPN's Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach. The two reporters have come out with their new 2024 bowl projections and it doesn't feature good news for Josh Heupel.

Nope, both Bonagura and Schlabach have Tennessee missing out on the College Football Playoff as one of the first teams out. That's not what anyone in Knoxville wants to see. On top of that, Bonagura has Tennessee facing Iowa in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl, while Schlabach thinks the Vols will take on Syracuse in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl.

The Tennessee Vols are going to take a dip in the CFP rankings after losing to Georgia

"I dropped Tennessee from the 12-team bracket after its 31-17 loss at Georgia," Schlabach wrote. "I'm just not sure the Volunteers are going to have enough meat on their résumé outside of their win over Alabama to get an at-large berth. I replaced them with Notre Dame, which continues to cruise against lesser opponents."

Right now, it sure seems like Tennessee might need to get some help from other teams to sneak into the CFP. With losses against Arkansas and Georgia, it may prevent them from being in the playoff hunt, though there's no doubt in our minds they're one of the Top 12 teams in the land.

Moving forward, Tennessee must focus on what it can control. Things will start this Saturday with a Week 13 matchup against UTEP at home. Then, the Vols will close out the season against Vanderbilt. If they finish the year 10-2, it might be enough for them to get a CFP spot. However, a lot of people have a feeling the loss to UGA will ultimately keep them out of things.