Tennessee
Tennessee is 7-2, No. 8 in the CFP rankings, and No. 10 of 138 in the machine's ratings, 18.6 points better than an average FBS team. Last game: won 34-6 vs Kentucky in Week 10. The machine gives Tennessee a 54% chance to make the playoff.
Week 11: at Texas A&M, Saturday, Nov 14: the matchup, unit by unit
Why Tennessee is No. 10
- Tennessee's rating is 18.6: the machine's estimate that Tennessee is 18.6 points better than an average FBS team on a neutral field. That is No. 10 of 138. For scale, 0 is an average FBS team: right now the closest to it is No. 68 Arizona State (0.2).
- It started the season at 15.1, ESPN's preseason Football Power Index from July. Its results since have moved it up 3.5.
- The biggest weekly moves: +1.6 after Week 7 (W 26-10 vs Alabama) and +1.4 after Week 2 (W 45-24 at Georgia Tech).
- Its record is 7-2. The 2 losses were to No. 4 Texas, No. 11 South Carolina, by 3.0 points on average. The 7 wins came by 23.1 points on average; the best was over No. 2 Alabama. The rating weighs how much a team won or lost by and against whom, not just the win-loss count.
- Its FBS opponents so far average No. 41 in the machine's ratings.
- Just above is No. 9 Indiana (19.6); just below is No. 11 South Carolina (18.6).
The rating, week by week
Strengths and weak spots
Head coach
Josh Heupel is in his 6th season at Tennessee (since 2021). This season: 7-2. At Tennessee overall: 52-22, counting this season.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Team stats
Season totals and averages over 9 games, each with its national rank among 138 FBS teams (No. 1 = best). The game-by-game story is in the season, week by week.
Passing
| Completions-attempts | 143-222 |
|---|---|
| Passing yards | 1601 |
| Touchdowns-interceptions | 10-4 |
| Yards per attempt* | 7.2No. 84 of 138 |
| Explosive pass rate | 8.8%No. 108 of 138 |
| Sacks allowed (rate) | 7.1%No. 107 of 138 |
Rushing
| Carries-yards | 389-1944 |
|---|---|
| Yards per carry | 5.0No. 34 of 138 |
| 10-plus-yard runs (rate) | 15.7%No. 40 of 138 |
| Stuffed at or behind the line (rate) | 13.5%No. 17 of 138 |
Scoring
| Points per game | 32.4No. 42 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play | 5.89No. 70 of 138 |
| Third-down rate | 37.5%No. 91 of 138 |
| Red-zone TD rate | 72.4%No. 20 of 138 |
| Giveaways | 11No. 70 of 138 |
Defense
| Points allowed per game | 15.1No. 11 of 138 |
|---|---|
| Yards per play allowed | 4.78No. 18 of 138 |
| Yards per pass attempt allowed | 5.8No. 7 of 138 |
| Yards per carry allowed | 3.8No. 51 of 138 |
| Sack rate | 11.8%No. 1 of 138 |
| Takeaways | 17No. 11 of 138 |
| Third-down rate allowed | 33.1%No. 27 of 138 |
Totals are the official box score. * Yards per attempt and the rates come from the play-by-play, where passing yards count on completions only, so they can differ from the box score by a play or two.
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Player leaders
The top 3 in each category over the same games. Passing yards count every completion (official box score).
Passing
- George MacIntyre78-117, 853 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT
- Faizon Brandon62-102, 721 yds, 8 TD, 1 INT
Rushing
- DeSean Bishop196 carries, 1066 yds, 13 TD
- Daune Morris66 carries, 434 yds, 3 TD
- Faizon Brandon54 carries, 159 yds, 3 TD
Receiving
- Mike Matthews37 catches, 566 yds, 4 TD
- Braylon Staley36 catches, 309 yds, 2 TD
- Dasaahn Brame15 catches, 184 yds, 0 TD
Tackles
- Arion Carter59
- Amare Campbell58
- TJ Metcalf53
Sacks
- Tyree Weathersby7
- Xavier Gilliam6
- Mariyon Dye5
Interceptions
- Dejuan Lane4
- Kayin Lee2
- Jeremiah Telander1
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
Who's playing
Based on who has actually played this season, from the box scores, not the team's published depth chart. Each bar is that player's share of the team's attempts, carries (quarterbacks left out), catches or tackles. The box score lists no positions, so there is no offensive line here.
Throwing
- George MacIntyreMost passes in the last game7 games117 attempts53%
- Faizon Brandon6 games102 attempts46%
Carrying
- DeSean Bishop9 games196 carries63%
- Daune Morris9 games66 carries21%
- Javin Gordon4 games28 carries9%
- Hunter Barnes2 games11 carries4%
Catching
- Mike Matthews9 games37 catches26%
- Braylon Staley9 games36 catches25%
- Dasaahn Brame7 games15 catches10%
- Radarious Jackson7 games13 catches9%
Tackling
- Arion Carter8 games59 tackles10%
- Amare Campbell9 games58 tackles10%
- TJ Metcalf9 games53 tackles9%
- Jeremiah Telander9 games44 tackles8%
Data provided by CollegeFootballData.com.
The season, week by week
- Week 1 W 56–9 vs Furman. Furman is an FCS team, so there is no FBS baseline to grade this one against. Lost the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 2 W 45–24 at Georgia Tech. The run game was the strength: 6.6 yards a carry, 1.5 more than Georgia Tech usually allows. Won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 3 W 42–9 vs Kennesaw State. The run game was the strength: 6.5 yards a carry, 2.5 more than Kennesaw State usually allows.
- Week 4 L 17–20 vs Texas. The pass defense gave ground: Texas got 10.6 yards an attempt, 3.0 over what it usually gains. Won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 5 W 24–14 vs Auburn. The passing game struggled: 4.8 yards an attempt, 2.5 less than Auburn usually allows. The fewest yards an attempt it has allowed all season.
- Week 6 W 24–17 at Arkansas. The run defense gave ground: Arkansas got 3.9 yards a carry, 0.8 over what it usually gains. Lost the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 7 W 26–10 vs Alabama. The pass defense was the strength: Alabama got 5.1 yards an attempt, 4.6 under what it usually gains. The machine had Alabama by 7.6 (68%), so this was a win it did not see coming; Tennessee won the turnover battle by 2.
- Week 8 L 24–27 at South Carolina. The pass defense was the strength: South Carolina got 6.6 yards an attempt, 1.4 under what it usually gains. The machine had Tennessee by 1.7 (54%), so this was a loss it did not see coming.
- Week 10 W 34–6 vs Kentucky. The run game was the strength: 6.5 yards a carry, 2.8 more than Kentucky usually allows. Won the turnover battle by 3.