The conference championships have been played, and we now have the final rankings handed out by the College Football Playoff committee. After dropping out of the rankings a week ago following a blowout loss to Vanderbilt at home, Tennessee football remains unranked heading into its bowl game.
The Vols currently do not know which bowl game they will be playing in. Popular options in projections include the ReliaQuest Bowl, Gator Bowl and Music City Bowl, though.
In this CFP ranking, there are seven SEC teams in the top-25. This includes No. 3 Georgia, No. 6 Ole Miss, No. 7 Texas A&M, No. 8 Oklahoma, No. 9 Alabama, No. 13 Texas and No. 14 Vanderbilt.
The playoff picture features the following:
- 1-seed: Indiana (No. 1)
- 2-seed: Ohio State (No. 2)
- 3-seed: Georgia (No. 3)
- 4-seed Texas Tech (No. 4)
- 5-seed Oregon (No. 5)
- 6-seed Ole Miss (No. 6)
- 7-seed Texas A&M (No. 7)
- 8-seed Oklahoma (No. 8)
- 9-seed Alabama (No. 9)
- 10-seed Miami (No. 10)
- 11-seed Tulane (No. 20)
- 12-seed JMU (No. 24)
More From RTI: Tennessee Football Legend Being Honored at SEC Championship Game
UT head coach Josh Heupel has concluded his fifth regular season at Tennessee, however, it was capped off with a brutal loss to in-state rival Vanderbilt. The Commodores used a 31-3 run to end the game to win 45-24 in Neyland Stadium. This resulted in an 8-4 (4-4 SEC) mark for the Vols in a turbulent 2025 season that followed an unprecedented offseason of change.
In his Tennessee tenure, Heupel now holds a 45-19 (24-16 SEC) record. He has steered the Vols to a pair of 10-win regular seasons, including in 2024, which saw UT earn a spot in the College Football Playoffs as the 9-seed. Tennessee would go on to lose at Ohio State, the eventual national champion, in the first round.
Heupel has just helped ink one of the best signing classes in the country as he prepares for next season, as well. The group ranks No. 4 in the country on 247. Now, he’ll prepare to deal with the transfer portal as he looks to manage his current roster and add pieces once it opens in January.
So far, just three players have announced their intention to enter. Defensive back Boo Carter, defensive lineman Jamal Wallace and edge rusher Kellen Lindstrom are all departing.
