Volunteer Country

Why Tennessee Volunteer Fans Should Be Upset About Their Latest AP Poll Ranking

Here is why the Tennessee Volunteers should be upset about their latest rankings in week two of the AP College Football Poll.
Christian Kirby|
Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel speaks after the Aflac Kickoff Game between the Volunteers and Syracuse held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., on August 30, 2025.
Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel speaks after the Aflac Kickoff Game between the Volunteers and Syracuse held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga., on August 30, 2025. | Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Tennessee Volunteers

Here is why the Tennessee Volunteers should be upset about their latest rankings in week two of the AP College Football Poll.

Week two preparations of the college football season are underway as teams all across the country prepare for their second matchup of 2025. As the next slate of games inches closer, a new batch of rankings has been released.

The lastest AP College Football Poll saw some big movers after an exciting weekend of games with teams such as Miami, LSU, and SMU all jumping more than five spots. One team that did not experience a large jump however, was the Tennessee Volunteers.

Despite questions entering the season, the Vols turned in an extremley strong performance against Syracuse, dominating the Orange from start to finish on the way to a 45-26 victory. The Vols were ranked 24th in the nation at the time of their win, and jumped just two spots in the latest poll.

The lack of rankings increase should frustrate Volunteer fans for many reasons. One of the biggest however, is that the Vols are still ranked behind rivals Alabama, who experienced arguably the worst loss of the weekend to an unranked Florida State team. There are also eight other SEC programs currently ranked ahead of Tennessee, despite two of them having worse records than the Volunteers.

While rankings change from week to week, and the Volunteers have plenty of time to secure a spot in the College Football Playoff, the AP Poll's relatively low ranking should certainly bother Tennessee fans.

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Christian Kirby
CHRISTIAN KIRBY

Christian Kirby II is a multimedia sports journalist who has years of experience both covering and working with collegiate sports teams. He has received a journalism degree and a sports media certificate from the University of Georgia and is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Emerging Media.

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