Tennessee football falls behind rivals in SEC power rankings

Tennessee football is looking to have its third quarterback in the Josh Heupel era take over the high-powered, explosive offense. Unlike previous years, Nico Iamaleava is inexperienced and has a lot to prove to the rest of the SEC and college football. 

Heupel has brought his fast-paced, explosive offense to Knoxville, and we immediately saw it boost Tennessee's success on the gridiron. He has a 27-12 record at Tennessee while putting together one 10-win season, a Citrus Bowl win, and an Orange Bowl win in three seasons. 

Will the Vols be able to continue its upward trajectory with a young quarterback running the show? I think it's possible, but CBS doesn't think 2024 will be the year for the Vols in the SEC. CBS Sports writer Will Backus ranks the Vols outside the top five and behind three rivals. 

"It's Nico time in Tennessee," CBS' Will Backus writes. "After sitting behind Joe Milton for a majority of his freshman season and winning Citrus Bowl Bowl MVP honors in his first career start, Nico Iamaleava is gliding into the 2024 season as Tennessee's unquestioned starter at quarterback. An experienced offensive line that returns three starters, a backfield paced by Dylan Sampson and a wide receiver corps featuring six players with at least three years of collegiate experience will help him overcome any early growing pains. Keep an eye on Tennessee's defense; it's quietly gotten better every year under Josh Heupel. With a deep rotation along the line and an edge rusher like James Pearce Jr. wreaking havoc in opposing backfields, this group might take its biggest leap yet."

Georgia holds the top spot in the rankings. SEC newcomer Texas Longhorns is ranked second in the conference in its inaugural SEC season. Ole Miss is ranked third in year five under Lane Kiffin. Alabama is ranked fourth in head coach Kalen DeBoer's first season as the Tide's head coach. Missouri rounds out the top five before Tennessee at No. 6. 

The top ten of the rankings round out with LSU at No. 7, SEC newcomer Oklahoma at No. 8, Kentucky at No. 9, and Texas A&M at No. 10 under first-year head coach Mike Elko. Other notable teams are Florida at No. 11, South Carolina at No. 13, and Vanderbilt at No. 16. 

While the SEC will not have traditional divisions for the 2024 and 2025 seasons, the conference could shake out differently than what we're used to seeing. Without divisions, the top two teams at the end of the year will play for the SEC Championship, rather than one player from the East Division and one team from the West Division.