Tennessee football has one game left in the 2025 season, a clash with Illinois in the Music City Bowl. However, it’s never too early to give projections for what the following 2026 campaign will look like for Josh Heupel and his team. With the schedule officially announced, it’s getting a little easier to make predictions.
While it’s still tough to fully project what next season’s roster will look like at key positions such as quarterback, a popular podcast, ‘That SEC Podcast‘, went through every team in the SEC to give their official predictions before the portal opens.
Both hosts, Mike and Shane, landed on Tennessee at 9-3. It is important to note that Shane is a Tennessee fan and Mike went to UT, though he takes a neutral approach. Here’s what they said:
Shane: “How do you say 12-0 in Spanish?”
Mike: “Perfecto.”
Shane: “The scheduling gods have not been favorable this time. I’m thinking 9-3. I think 9-3 is the number.”
Mike: “That’s exactly what I said. I think the over/under is 8.5.”
Shane: “But that gets them in the playoffs. Nine gets them in.”
2026 SEC record predictions
Alabama: 9-3
Arkansas: 3-9
Auburn: 7-5
Florida: 9-3
Georgia: 11-1
Kentucky: 3-9
LSU: 8-4
Ole Miss: 8-4
Miss State: 4-8
Missouri: 7-5
Oklahoma: 9-3
South Carolina: 6-6
Tennessee: 9-3
Texas: 10-2
Texas A&M: 9-3
Vanderbilt: 6-6 https://t.co/kYeW0kvFvI— SEC Mike (@MichaelWBratton) December 15, 2025
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Here’s the full look at Tennessee’s 2026 schedule, though TV designations and kickoff times are yet to be determined:
Sept. 5 – vs. Furman
Sept. 12 – at Georgia Tech
Sept. 19 – vs. Kennesaw State
Sept. 26 – vs. Texas
Oct. 3 – vs. Auburn
Oct. 10 – at Arkansas
Oct. 17 – vs. Alabama
Oct. 24 – at South Carolina
Nov. 7 – vs. Kentucky
Nov. 14 – at Texas A&M
Nov. 21 – vs. LSU
Nov. 28 – at Vanderbilt
Tennessee’s 2025 bowl game against Illinois is set for Dec. 30 at 5:30 p.m. ET. The Music City Bowl vs. Illinois will air on ESPN from Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee, the home of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans.
