With the way the media has been talking about the Tennessee football team of late, you'd think a 4-8 season is on the way for Josh Heupel and his playmakers. Yes, some people are ready to hit the panic button with Nico Iamaleava gone, but not everything one is hitting the panic button.
Instead, the oddsmakers over in Vegas still think a head-turning campaign could be on the way. That's right, even with Nico gone and Joey Aguilar coming in to take his place, the updated over/under for the Vols in 2025 has been set at 8.5 games. Could UT push for 9-10 wins and a return trip to the College Football Playoff?
Tennessee football's updated over/under for wins this season has been set at 8.5
In our early game-by-game preview, we've got Tennessee going 8-4 this year. However, what if Aguilar ends up being a superstar for Heupel and the transition to him running the offense goes smoother than anyone could have imagined?
If that ends up being the case, then sure, we can go ahead and start thinking about a 9-10 win season. It's all going to come down to how Aguilar plays, plus all of the new pieces on both sides of the ball. Don't forget about the returning playmakers, though, including Mike Matthews, Jermod McCoy, Boo Carter and many others.
We're not going to pretend like the Iamaleava exit isn't going to impact this team. It certainly will. However, the Vols have Syracuse and East Tennessee State to open the season before a monster Week 3 clash with Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs.
If Aguilar can get into a good rhythm in the opening two weeks, who knows, maybe he'll be able to do the unthinkable and power Tennessee over the Bulldogs. If Tennessee does start the season 3-0, taking the over for wins would feel like it was a genius move. We're going to learn a lot about this team come late August and early September, but people who continue to doubt the Vols just because Iamaleava is with UCLA are in for a big surprise this summer and fall.