Tennessee ended its regular season on a high note.

The Vols cruised past Vanderbilt, 48-24 at Neyland Stadium, finishing off its schedule 8-4 overall and 4-4 in SEC play.

It marked the third-straight season that Tennessee went .500 in the conference, the longest streak since the Vols did it between 1989-2004.

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

ENJOY VOLREPORT WITH A PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION

The strong finish wasn’t enough to keep Tennessee in the post-regular season Associated Press Top 25 poll on Sunday, though.

After falling to No. 25 after a loss to Georgia last week, the Vols dropped out of the rankings for the first time this season, receiving 98 votes.

Tennessee now heads into its bowl game with momentum after quarterback Joe Milton III accounted for six total touchdowns vs. the Commodores.

The Vols’ defense held Vanderbilt to just 76 rushing yards.

Tennessee will learn its postseason destination following conference championship games next Sunday, though it is currently projected by most media outlets to play in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl at TIAA Bank in Jacksonville, Florida on Dec 29.

Elsewhere in the league, Georgia maintained its No. 1 ranking after putting the finishing touches on another unbeaten season with its 31-23 win over Georgia Tech.

Alabama, which will play Georgia in the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta next Saturday, stayed at No. 8 following a thrilling 27-24 victory at Auburn in the closing seconds.

Missouri jumped to No. 9 as it bookended a 10-win season with a 48-14 rout of Arkansas and Ole Miss and LSU finished at No. 11 and No. 13 respectively.

–––––

– TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM.

– ENJOY VOLREPORT WITH A PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION.

– SUBSCRIBE TO THE VOLREPORT YOUTUBE CHANNEL.

– FOLLOW VOLREPORT ON TWITTER: @TennesseeRivals, @TMansfieldMedia, @ByNoahTaylor, @RealTBannerman, @RyanTSylvia, @Dale_Dowden, @ShayneP_Media, @TylerIvens, @Hunter_DeNote.

–––––