The preseason AP Top 25 rankings were a bit of a joke, as the Tennessee football team was somehow ranked No. 24 in the country. There were a lot of questions among the voters regarding new quarterback Joey Aguilar.
Well, Aguilar went ahead and delivered a spectacular performance, putting together a statement win for the Vols over Syracuse. Because of how great Tennessee looked to open the new season, they've moved up in the new AP Top 25, but barely.
Moments ago, the new rankings came out and the Vols are now the No. 22 team in the country. It's a small jump for head man Josh Heupel and his players. This doesn't make any sense at all from our chair.
Tennessee football drops one spot in ESPN's football power index rankings
Tennessee football is now the No. 22 ranked team in the AP Top 25 rankings
Again, the fact that Tennessee was No. 24 was a bit of a head-scratcher, but Aguilar went ahead and silenced his haters. In the win over Syracuse, he tossed for 247 yards and three touchdowns - it was just what the doctor ordered.
He wasn't the only standout, though, as Star Thomas rushed for 92 yards, Braylon Staley had his incredible TD grab, Colton Hood had a dream debut at cornerback and the offensive line was tremendous. There are others who looked fantastic too.
Come this weekend, the Vols are going to be returning to Knoxville for the home-opener against East Tennessee State. We don't want to jinx things, but something tells us a dominant victory is going to be on the way and Aguilar is once again going to put on a show, this time in front of a packed crowd at Neyland Stadium.
That should then set the table for a Top 20 matchup between Georgia and the Vols at Neyland in Week 3. That's going to be one of the best games of the season and Tennessee/Aguilar should have some pep in their step leading up to kickoff. That's a showdown a lot of people can't wait for and rightfully so. Maybe the AP will get things right for the Vols next week too.