A few things were made evident by Tennessee’s defeat to Missouri last weekend. It eliminated the Volunteers’ official outside chance of contending for the SEC East and probably eliminated their chances of winning the Citrus Bowl. Tennessee is probably going to move up to the next tier, where possible destinations include Duke’s Mayo, Music City, Gator, Reliaquest, and Liberty.
Most recent Tennessee Bowl predictions for Music City vs. Rutgers on ESPN (Bonagura)
Our opinion: Against Greg Schiano in Nashville? That sounds like a ton of fun. One of the bigger bowl season plots would be “Schiano Sunday,” and it would be intriguing to see things from a different angle a few years later.
ESPN (Schlabach): Virginia Tech vs. Mayo of Duke
Our opinion: Brent Pry’s program has quietly advanced, and he now just needs to win one more game to qualify for a bowl game. Even so, a game versus Tennessee would be difficult. In this case, Tennessee would probably be a double-digit favorite.
CBS Sports: Gator vs. North Carolina
Action Network: Gator vs. North Carolina
Our take: This is probably the most purely fun matchup on the board. Drake Maye’s Tar Heels have fallen apart after a white hot start, and it’s difficult to know what you’re getting with them. Absolutely puzzling losses to Georgia Tech and Virginia have them in this spot. Just a few weeks ago it wasn’t all that crazy to imagine them making a run at the CFP. This would be a fun one.
Athlon Sports: Gator vs. Clemson
Our take: Would they really give us Tennessee-Clemson in consecutive seasons? Dabo probably wouldn’t hate it, considering how poorly his team executed in the Orange Bowl a year ago. Personally, I’m for something different.
USA Today: Gator vs. Miami
Our take: Speaking of falling apart, hello Miami. A 4-0 start with a big win over Texas A&M has quickly turned into a 6-4 record with Louisville and Boston College left to play. Tennessee is 2-1 all time against the Hurricanes and hasn’t faced them since that 10-6 all the way back in 2003.
The full bowl slate will be revealed on Sunday, December 3rd.