This is a victory that's going to keep the streets in Knoxville pretty dang loud for the next few nights. No. 14 (for now) Tennessee did the unthinkable, taking down No. 6 Alabama 26-10 at Neyland Stadium, proving that the Vols have what it takes to make serious noise this winter. With a loss, it felt like the College Football Playoff would become an afterthought.
Not anymore. Leading up to kickoff, Josh Heupel and Co. had a 24% chance to reach the Playoff according to the ESPN College Football Power Index. That's, of course, no longer the case, as that number has immediately jumped to 47%. Time for Vols fans to start dreaming a little bit?
DeSean Bishop had Josh Heupel fired up after the Vols stunned Alabama
A lot can happen in the next few weeks, but Tennessee sure made a statement here. The defense had Keelon Russell completely out of his element, while the offense did more than enough to close this one out in style. Obviously, veteran running back DeSean Bishop deserves a whole lot of credit for that, as he was once again a workhorse.
In Saturday's win in front of about 100,000 people at Neyland Stadium, Bishop carried the rock 32 times for 159 yards and two touchdowns. Both of those scores came in the second half, with the Vols relying on the power back with the game on the line. Heupel was also happy to see young quarterback George MacIntyre deliver when his number was called.
"MacIntyre was steady, cool all day long," Heupel said as Vols fans stormed the field. "He made plays. Bishop... (was) just Bishop."
Fire em up! pic.twitter.com/FBlVvEXrXZ
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) October 17, 2026
With this victory, Tennessee is now 6-1 on the season, which is something not many people expected out of this group leading up to the season. The only loss was a 20-17 heartbreaker, and with this showing against the Crimson Tide, UT has let everyone know they're ready to go head-to-head with whoever comes in front of them.
There's, of course, still a ton for this squad to improve on both offensively and defensively, but goodness, this feeling just feels great for the Vols faithful, especially with Tennessee starting to get some respect. After missing out on the College Football Playoff last season, there was worry that maybe the Vols wouldn't make it again this year, especially with a first-year starter at QB.
Faizon Brandon has since made his way to the bench, with MacIntyre leading the offense. After taking down Bama, the Tennessee native has probably locked in the QB1 job too, and he'll need to post some more memorable performances if the Vols do want to be on the field once the CFP gets here. For now, there's still a lot of football to be played before Heupel even starts thinking about the Playoff, but we can do that for him. This team is built to get there, and the updated percentages via the ESPN FPI only back that up.
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