Tennessee is gearing up for a massive 2023 campaign in Josh Heupel’s third year as the Vols’ head coach.
After an 11-2 season in 2022 with a victory over Clemson in the Orange Bowl, expectations are high for the Vols, even despite a change in the cast of characters heading into the season.
Hendon Hooker is out and Joe Milton is in. Jalin Hyatt and Cedric Tillman are out while Dont’e Thornton and Squirrel White are in. Jeremy Banks and Juwan Mitchell are out while Aaron Beasley and Keenan Pili are in. The list goes on and on.
The Vols are going to have to win some tough contests throughout the season, though. ESPN gives Tennessee the No. 16 strength of schedule this year with a challenging non-conference opponent in UTSA and a complete wildcard out of the SEC West with Texas A&M.
Tennessee will enter the season with the No. 12 AP ranking, the No. 10 coaches ranking, and the No. 8 ranking in ESPN’s SP+ metric. But where do the Vols’ 12 opponents land?
Here’s a look at where all of Tennessee’s 2023 opponents fall in each of the three major preseason rankings heading into the season. The Vols will kick off the season on September 2 against Virginia in Nashville’s Nissan Stadium.
More from RTI: Where Tennessee Football Outgoing Transfers Landed Ahead of 2023 Season
Week 1 (Sep 2): vs Virginia [Nashville]
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: 79
Week 2 (Sep 9): vs Austin Peay
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: N/A
Week 3 (Sep 16): at Florida
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: 23
Week 4 (Sep 23): vs UT-San Antonio
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: 56
Week 5 (Sep 30): vs South Carolina
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: 33
Week 6 (Oct 7): BYE
- BYE
Week 7 (Oct 14): vs Texas A&M
- AP Ranking: 23
- Coaches Poll Ranking: 25
- SP+ Ranking: 16
Week 8 (Oct 21): at Alabama
- AP Ranking: 4
- Coaches Poll Ranking: 3
- SP+ Ranking: 4
Week 9 (Oct 28): at Kentucky
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: 24
Week 10 (Nov 4): vs UConn [Homecoming]
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: 125
Week 11 (Nov 11): at Missouri
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: 35
Week 12 (Nov 18): vs Georgia
- AP Ranking: 1
- Coaches Poll Ranking: 1
- SP+ Ranking: 1
Week 13 (Nov 25): vs Vanderbilt
- AP Ranking: N/A
- Coaches Poll Ranking: N/A
- SP+ Ranking: 76
