Tennessee football’s stock is falling drastically, according to Lindy’s magazine. We don’t see it being so dire for Josh Heupel’s Vols.
Josh Heupel on Nico Iamaleava exit: ‘No one is bigger than the Power T’
Tennessee coach Josh Heupel reacted to quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s departure on April 12.
Tennessee’s mid-April quarterback swap damaged the Vols’ chance of making the College Football Playoff, but did the Nico Iamaleava for Joey Aguilar switcheroo make the Vols one of the SEC’s weakest teams? That’s what one preseason publication thinks.
Lindy’s magazine picked Tennessee 11th in the SEC in its conference picks. Might want to take a peek at that schedule, though, before predicting such a freefall for the Vols.
On this edition of “SEC Football Unfiltered,” a podcast from the USA TODAY Network, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams wade through Lindy’s SEC hierarchy and identify a few underrated and overrated teams.
Is Tennessee football underrated by Lindy’s?
Adams: Did Lindy’s forget to look at Tennessee’s schedule? The Vols have the fortune of playing the SEC’s four worst teams: Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Kentucky and Mississippi State. Before the season begins, they’re well on their way to no worse than a .500 conference record. I’m not expecting Tennessee to return to the playoff, but that schedule should prevent a disaster. Also, Josh Heupel has never produced a losing record in his seven seasons as a coach, even after he inherited the pieces of Jeremy Pruitt’s mess. He’s a coach with a high floor, and that history counts for something. It should count for more than 11th place.
Toppmeyer: This feels like a knee-jerk, half-baked reaction to Iamaleava’s transfer. Tennessee’s ceiling altered when Iamaleava spurned the Vols in mid-April. His exodus and the ensuing scramble to replace him reduced Tennessee’s chance of making the playoff. But, I’m unconvinced the quarterback switch changed Tennessee’s floor much. As John pointed out, the Vols benefit from facing the bottom shelf of SEC teams. Also, Heupel’s teams are very tough at Neyland Stadium, buoying the Vols’ chances in an important swing game at home against what should be an improved Oklahoma team. Tennessee ought to win four or five SEC games. It’s tough to imagine that not being good enough to finish in the top 10 of the SEC standings.
Lindy’s SEC conference picks
1. Texas
2. LSU
3. Alabama
4. Georgia
5. Oklahoma
6. South Carolina
7. Florida
8. Ole Miss
9. Auburn
10. Missouri
11. Tennessee
12. Texas A&M
13. Arkansas
14. Vanderbilt
15. Kentucky
16. Mississippi State
Overrated, underrated
Adams’ underrated teams: Tennessee, Texas A&M
Adams’ overrated teams: Alabama, Oklahoma, South Carolina
Toppmeyer’s underrated teams: Ole Miss, Tennessee
Toppmeyer’s overrated teams: Oklahoma, Florida
Where to listen to SEC Football Unfiltered
Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s national college football columnist. John Adams is the senior sports columnist for the Knoxville News Sentinel. Subscribe to the SEC Football Unfiltered podcast, and check out the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox
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