Tennessee football is coming off a big win over Syracuse in Week 1. The Vols put the petal to the metal on offense, scoring 45 points and totaling 495 yards in Joey Aguilar's Big Orange debut.
A lot of talking heads and analysts doubted Tennessee's offense would be as good or better than last year with the loss of former quarterback Nico Iamaleava. After one week, it looks like Tennessee has already won the quarterback trade with UCLA.
The lower expectations landed Tennessee at No. 24 in the AP Poll heading into the first week of the season, but ESPN's Football Power Index had the Vols a little higher at No. 8.
Despite the offensive explosion and solid showing by the defense, Tennessee dropped one spot in the FPI rankings to No. 9. While Alabama dropped below the Vols, Ole Miss and USC jumped ahead of Tennessee after Week 1.
ESPN’s FPI has been updated following Saturday of Week 1📈📉https://t.co/hQeeiBaJkM pic.twitter.com/PzTxwxOrq6
— On3 (@On3sports) August 31, 2025
The Vols remain in the top ten and sit between Notre Dame and LSU in the rankings. Tennessee is the fourth-highest SEC team, behind No. 1 Texas, No. 2 Georgia, and No. 4 Ole Miss.
A big reason for Tennessee's success was quarterback play, and Heupel recognized that in his post-game press conference. The Vols had a lot of missed downfield shots last year, but Joey Aguilar was able to connect on some key throws in the season opener.
"It was good to see us hit some down the field shots today, and that's got to be a part of who we are as we move forward."#Vols Josh Heupel on the offense's ability to capitalize on explosive worthy plays. pic.twitter.com/MyK24mnfji
— Paige Dauer (@PaigeDauerFDP) August 30, 2025
If Aguilar can continue to consistently lead the Vols down the field and connect on some deep shots, the Vols offense could be the best we've seen since the 2022 season.
Tennessee will now turn to its Week 2 matchup against in-state opponent, East Tennessee State. The Vols and Buccaneers are set to kickoff at 3:30 PM ET on Saturday in Tennessee's home opener.