Tennessee’s breakout win over Alabama changed the conversation around the Volunteers in a hurry, but Week 8 brings a different kind of test: a road trip to South Carolina, where LaNorris Sellers and the Gamecocks are waiting with upset potential of their own.
The Volunteers are now No. 11 in the latest AP Poll after toppling the then-No. 6 Crimson Tide in Week 7, and the playoff chatter is suddenly real.
But the path ahead is still crowded. Tennessee still has Kentucky and LSU on the schedule, and this SEC stretch leaves little margin for error.
South Carolina enters at 3-3 and coming off a bye, with a resume that includes some flashes against conference competition. The Gamecocks knocked off then-No.
16 Florida in Week 6 and also played Mississippi State and Kentucky to one-possession games earlier in SEC play. Tennessee and Georgia are the only two ranked teams left on South Carolina’s schedule - for now.
Oddsmakers have this one tight, with South Carolina favored at home in a game expected to go down to the wire. That fits the profiles of these two teams. Tennessee’s offense has been inconsistent, ranking 123rd nationally in success rate, while its defense has been the real backbone, sitting sixth in defensive success rate and 15th in adjusted EPA/Play.
Sellers is the name that changes everything for South Carolina. The junior quarterback has had his ups and downs in 2026, but his ceiling is obvious. He’s considered a potential first-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, and his Week 6 performance against Florida was his cleanest statement yet: four touchdowns and a 65.7 percent completion rate.
Accuracy has still been a concern, though, with Sellers completing 61.5 percent of his passes overall. Even so, the production has been undeniable. Through six games, he has thrown for 1,338 yards and 12 touchdowns with four interceptions, while also adding 411 rushing yards and two scores at more than six yards per carry.
That dual-threat ability is a big reason South Carolina sits 13th in adjusted EPA/Play on offense. And it’s also why this matchup feels tricky for Tennessee, especially with the Volunteers’ passing game still struggling. South Carolina’s defense has been vulnerable through the air, ranking 120th in EPA/Pass, but Tennessee has not been much better in that area, sitting 119th in EPA/Pass on offense.
Quarterback uncertainty has been part of Tennessee’s season, too. Faizon Brandon and George MacIntyre have both seen time under center, and while MacIntyre helped lead the Volunteers to the win over Alabama, he has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns this season.
South Carolina’s recent results suggest the Gamecocks can hang with top-tier SEC competition. The Florida win proved they can beat a strong opponent, and their losses to Mississippi State, Alabama and Kentucky have only aged better with time, especially with Kamario Taylor playing against Mississippi State.
Tennessee’s defense may have just erased Alabama, but Sellers gives South Carolina a different kind of problem. He’s the sort of quarterback who can punish a defense in multiple ways, and that makes the Gamecocks dangerous in a spot that could easily turn into a letdown for the Volunteers after such a massive Week 7 win.
Pick: South Carolina Moneyline (-122 at DraftKings)
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