Tennessee’s strong start to the season earned a small bump in the latest AP rankings, with the Volunteers moving from No. 20 to No. 18 after their 56-9 win over Furman on Saturday.
The result was exactly what Tennessee needed in Week 1, and the poll reflected that. Freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon accounted for five total touchdowns, while transfer defensive lineman Xavier Gilliam added three sacks as the Vols handled the Paladins with ease.
Around the country, the AP Top 25 stayed mostly steady. Every ranked team won this past weekend except No.
24 Louisville, which fell to No. 9 Ole Miss in a thriller.
Even so, not every victory looked equally convincing.
For Tennessee, the two-spot rise puts it in a better place heading into Saturday night’s trip to Atlanta for a matchup with Georgia Tech. The Volunteers are now the eighth-highest ranked SEC team, sitting behind No.
2 Georgia, No. 4 Texas, No.
8 LSU, No. 9 Ole Miss, No.
10 Texas A&M, No. 11 Oklahoma, and No.
12 Alabama. LSU made the biggest climb among conference teams, jumping from No. 11 to No.
Tennessee’s AP path so far has been simple: preseason and Week 1 at No. 20, then Week 2 at No. 18.
Now comes a different kind of test. Georgia Tech enters at 0-1 after an underwhelming home loss to Colorado, but the Yellow Jackets will have the comfort of Bobby Dodd Stadium and a night kickoff to lean on. Tennessee, meanwhile, will be stepping into its first road game against a Power Four opponent, and Brandon will be making what amounts to his first real college football game.
The Vols may also have a little more mystery working in their favor. Tennessee didn’t show much against Furman, and junior defensive lineman Nathan Robinson said the defense kept things extremely basic.
“Man, we kept it so simple,” Robinson said about the Vols’ Week 1 defensive scheme. “And even keeping it so simple, it worked fantastically.
I mean, not getting into it too deep, but it was very basic stuff. I’m just excited to see how all the more complicated stuff, when it comes in, how much more exciting that’s going to be.”
Tennessee and Georgia Tech will kick off at 7:00 p.m. ET Saturday night at Bobby Dodd Stadium on ESPN.
In Other News...
Tennessee Has An Unexpected Name Entering The Heisman Conversation
Freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon has quickly become the most unexpected Tennessee name showing up in the early Heisman conversation, a reflection of how much attention can attach to a young player even before the season really settles in. Brandon is the Vols player sitting atop the betting odds board for the award, with backup quarterback George MacIntyre and running back DeSean Bishop also hanging around the contender mix as Tennessees offense continues to draw interest.
There has even been some broader recognition beyond the quarterback room, with defensive tackle Xavier Gilliam earning an honorable mention from ESPNs Bill Connelly for his work in Tennessees win over Furman. The next chance for the Vols to build on all of that comes against Georgia Tech, a matchup set for ESPN that will offer another early test of how real this buzz around Tennessee might be. [Read more 🡒]
Tennessee's Georgia Tech Trip Comes With A Personal Sideline Twist
Tennessees trip to Bobby Dodd Stadium brings more than just a rare nonconference meeting with Georgia Tech. It will be the Volunteers first game there in 40 years, a notable enough backdrop on its own, but it also puts wide receivers coach Kelsey Pope on one sideline and his brother, Kyle Pope, on the other.
Kyle Pope has been on Georgia Techs staff since 2024 and has built a coaching rsum that includes stops at Memphis, Liberty and Alabama. For Tennessee, it adds a personal layer to a game that already carries some history, with the Popes spending the week in opposing meeting rooms before sharing the same field in Atlanta. [Read more 🡒]
Tennessee Suddenly Has A Receiver Depth Problem Behind Braylon Staley
Tennessees receiving room took another hit in the opener against Furman, and the loss of Joakim Dodson only deepened the early strain on a group already trying to settle in around Braylon Staley. Dodsons right leg injury ended his season before it really started, and it arrived as the fourth season-ending injury for the Vols this early in 2026, a reminder of how quickly depth can vanish in a hurry.
That leaves freshman Tyreek King in line for a much larger backup role behind Staley than Tennessee likely imagined when the season opened. King came to Knoxville in May 2026 after committing in 2024, and the former four-star recruit now has an immediate chance to accelerate his development because the Vols do not have many easy answers at receiver. [Read more 🡒]