Ahead of the 2023 college football season, ESPN has utilized its SP+ rankings to rate each team in the country.
The rankings are determined by returning production, recent recruiting and recent history. These factors are combined to give each team a score that slots them on the list.
In Bill Connelly's article revealing the preseason rankings, he made a note on the intention of the rankings.
"As always: SP+ is a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency. It is a predictive measure of the most sustainable and predictable aspects of football, not a résumé ranking, and, along those same lines, these projections aren't intended to be a guess at what the AP Top 25 will look like at the end of the year. These are simply early offseason power rankings based on the information we have been able to gather to date."
With these aspects taken into account, Tennessee clocks in at No. 8. This is higher than its ranking in the Coaches and AP Poll that were released earlier in the off-season.
The number value assigned to the Vols is 22.4. This is just under seven points less than Georgia who sits at No. 1. It's less than a full point from a top-5 ranking, though.
This slots Tennessee as the fourth best team in the SEC behind the Bulldogs, Alabama and LSU, as well.
The SP+ rankings detail a few other aspects along with the overall team rating. This includes offensive and defensive metrics.
According to SP+, the Vols are projected to have the third best offense in the country and best in the SEC. Just Ohio State and USC own higher ratings.
On the defensive end, Tennessee came in at No. 32. This was good for eighth in the conference.
The list also claims the Vols will play the 16th hardest schedule in the country. This is the third toughest of teams in the top-15 with Alabama and LSU the only squads with tougher opponents.
Tennessee will begin the season on Sept. 2 in Nashville against Virginia. However, the college football season will officially begin on Aug. 26 in 'Week 0'.
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