Tennessee football is ranked No. 18 in Phil Steele's preseason ranking of Division I teams, with Texas as the top-ranked opponent on their schedule. This ranking places the Vols in the middle of the pack, but it's worth noting that they have a challenging schedule, with the 14th-toughest strength of schedule in college football, according to the FPI's strength of schedule ranking. Among SEC teams, Georgia is the highest-ranked at No. 2, followed by Oklahoma at No. 7 and Ole Miss at No. 8. South Carolina is No. 16, LSU is No. 21, and Florida is No. 23. Auburn is No. 29, Missouri is No. 33, and Vanderbilt is No. 34. Mississippi State is No. 51, Arkansas is No. 55, and Kentucky is No. 56. Georgia Tech, who hosts Tennessee at Bobby Dodd Stadium in Week 2, is ranked No. 44. The Vols' kickoff times for the first four games of the season have been set, with Furman at 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time on ESPN+, Georgia Tech at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, Kennesaw State at 7:45 p.m. ET on SEC Network, and Texas at Noon ET on ABC. The Vols are ranked No. 16 in the first College Football Power Index update from ESPN for the 2026 season, with a 20.5% chance to make the College Football Playoff and a projected 7-5 record. Ohio State is No. 1 in the FPI ranking, followed by Texas, Notre Dame, Oregon, and Georgia. The Vols' win-loss projection in the FPI is 7.3-4.7, with an 80.8% chance to win six or more games. This ranking and schedule suggest that Tennessee has the potential to be a competitive team this season, but it remains to be seen whether they can live up to the expectations set by their preseason ranking and FPI projections.
