The first edition of the College Football Playoff rankings comes out during the College Football Playoff reveal show tonight at 7:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.
While these rankings will change from week to week like the AP or Coaches Poll rankings, Tuesday night’s reveal will give the college football world an idea of how the committee evaluates the teams in playoff contention.
The playoff committee spent 10 years assessing a four-team playoff format but Tuesday’s reveal will be the start of a new chapter in the college football history books. How will the committee differ when formatting a 12-team playoff pool rather than a 4-team picture?
Tennessee currently sits in third place in the SEC standings with a 7-1 overall record and a 4-1 mark in conference play. Josh Heupel’s group has three ranked wins on the season with a 51-10 victory over No. 24 NC State, a 25-15 victory over No. 15 Oklahoma, and a 24-17 victory over No. 7 Alabama – though the committee would almost certainly be prioritizing the Alabama game.
The Vols, like every other SEC team, do have a loss, though. Tennessee fell to Arkansas in a 19-14 contest in Fayetteville at the start of October.
So… with a 7-1, 4-1 SEC record and a trio of ranked victories, will Tennessee make the cut for the first round of the CFP rankings on Tuesday night?
Five major publications from the sports world believe so.
Looking at a handful of projections in the final hours before the show on Tuesday afternoon, Tennessee looks to be a common pick to land in the initial group of 12 for the CFP rankings. While some have Tennessee a bit safer than others, it does seem as though Josh Heupel’s group has done enough to claim an initial spot despite a few undefeated teams still lurking in the Top 12 of the rankings.
More from RTI: Tennessee’s Josh Heupel Goes Way Back With Mississippi State’s Jeff Lebby
Here’s a look at where five major sports publications have Tennessee projected before the first college football playoff reveal on Tuesday night:
ESPN’s Heather Dinich has Tennessee as a host team in the first round of the playoffs, which means in the No. 5 to No. 8 range.
Dinich has Tennessee at No. 8 in her rankings with a matchup against No. 9 Boise State in Knoxville.
Dinich’s projections also have a slew of SEC teams on the outside looking in including Alabama, LSU, Texas A&M, and Ole Miss.
CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm also has Tennessee at No. 8 in his projections with an extremely familiar opponent for a projected first-round matchup.
Palm has Alabama at No. 9.
Palm does note that Alabama is essentially facing an elimination game against LSU this weekend and to expect more movement later on.
“Tennessee has not exactly been dominant in conference play with no win greater than 10 points, but wins are wins – except for the one over Alabama. That is not just a win,” Palm writes.
USA Today’s Paul Myerberg has the same line of thinking as Dinich and Palm, slotting the 7-1 Volunteers at No. 8 in his playoff projection.
“The Volunteers have defeats of Alabama, Oklahoma, North Carolina State and Florida,” Myerberg writes. “Only the Crimson Tide result will matter to the committee. Tennessee has also been often unimpressive offensively since the end of non-conference play, though there has been some clear improvement seen from young quarterback Nico Iamaleava.”
Myerberg has Notre Dame slotted at No. 9 in his projection.
247 Sports’ Brad Crawford has Tennessee going on the road for the first round of the playoffs, but still landing in his Top 12 nonetheless.
Crawford has Tennessee at No. 10 in his projection with a first-round game on the road against No. 7 Notre Dame.
Crawford has Alabama one spot behind Tennessee at No. 11 with a first-round game against No. 6 Ohio State.
“The door is open in the SEC for Alabama and Tennessee following Texas A&M’s stunning loss at South Carolina,” Crawford writes. “Alabama, despite two losses, is projected in should the Crimson Tide win out and the Vols could reach the SEC Championship Game if they topple Georgia.”
Athlon’s Jonathan Adams has Tennessee at the lowest projection of the five publications but still has Josh Heupel’s group making the cut.
Adams has Tennessee at No. 11 in his rankings with a fascinating projected first-round matchup at No. 6 Texas. Boy, wouldn’t that be wild?
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more College Football Playoff reveal coverage on Tuesday night.
