We’re nearly to the home stretch of the 2025 regular season, which means that the postseason is right around the corner. Josh Heupel’s Volunteers don’t have a chance at the College Football Playoffs with a 7-3 record, but the Vols do have massive rivalry games to close out the season against Florida and Vanderbilt. The final two games will be the difference in Tennessee going 7-5, 8-4, or 9-3 on the year.
We’ve been looking at bowl projections throughout the entire season, and it looks like things are starting to come into focus for both the bowl slate and the playoffs. There are obviously still major variables that could impact things, but the predictions are starting to line up in some form.
ESPN’s Mark Schlabach has Tennessee heading to the Sunshine State for its postseason contest. Schlabach has Josh Heupel’s team taking on Iowa in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Wednesday, Dec. 31, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL. Last season’s bowl game saw Michigan defeat No. 11 Alabama by a score of 19-13.
The Hawkeyes are 6-4 on the season after back-to-back losses against Oregon and Southern Cal in the last two weeks, snapping a previous three-game winning streak. Iowa will close the season against Michigan State and Nebraska. The Hawkeyes are 0-4 against ranked teams this season, but the four losses have only come from a combined 15 points. Iowa has not lost a single game by more than five points.
This is the second straight week that Schlabach has had Tennessee pinned to the New Year’s Eve contest in the home of the NFL’s Buccaneers.
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Schlabach’s ESPN cohort, Kyle Bonagura, has Tennessee staying closer to home. Bonagura has Tennessee tagged to go to the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in a Jan. 2 contest against Louisville in Charlotte, NC. This is also the second straight week that Bonagura has kept his prediction on Tennessee’s bowl game.
The Cardinals are 7-3 on the season with back-to-back losses against Cal and Clemson in the past two weeks. Louisville began the season with a strong 7-1 start, including a win over then-No. 2 Miami, but has fallen behind in the ACC standings with the back-to-back losses. It’ll finish the season with a road trip to SMU on Saturday before the season-finale at home against Kentucky.
Last season’s Duke’s Mayo contest saw Minnesota beat Virginia Tech by a score of 24-10 at Bank of America Stadium.
The last prediction on the menu today comes from USA Today’s Erick Smith, who also has Tennessee heading to the state of Florida. Smith has Tennessee projected to go to the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl in a matchup against Michigan on Dec. 31 in Orlando, FL.
The Wolverines are 8-2 on the season, with losses to Oklahoma and Southern Cal and wins over Wisconsin and Nebraska. With a contest against Maryland this weekend, their season’s final record will ultimately come down to a regular-season finale against Ohio State in Ann Arbor.
Last year’s Citrus Bowl saw Illinois defeat South Carolina by a score of 21-17. The prior year saw Tennessee demolish Iowa, 35-0.
As previously mentioned, though, these projections could be drastically swayed based on how Tennessee finishes the season with remaining games at Florida and against Vanderbilt.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more bowl projections next week before the final game of the season.
