Tennessee's 2024 schedule is among the toughest in college football, at least according to one metric.
ESPN's computer-based Football Power Index, which recently released a plethora of numbers and percentages for the upcoming season, including conference championship and College Football Playoff berth chances, ranked the strength of schedule for every team.
TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM
The Vols' slate was ranked No. 8 nationally and sixth in the SEC. The schedule includes a non-conference neutral site match up with N.C. State and conference road games at Oklahoma and Georgia.
Though the additions of Oklahoma and Texas have altered the league's scheduling format, Tennessee managed to keep all of its annual games in Alabama, Florida, Kentucky and Vanderbilt.
The Crimson Tide, who finished one game short of the national championship last season, will come to Knoxville on Oct. 19 under first-year head coach Kalen DeBoer while Florida and Vanderbilt are coming off of losing seasons.
MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Tennessee's chances of winning SEC according to ESPN Football Power Index
The Vols will play at Arkansas for the first time since 2020 coming off of the first of two bye weeks on Oct. 5. Tennessee's second bye week is sandwiched between homes games against Alabama and Kentucky.
The rest of the Vols' non-conference schedule includes FCS Chattanooga in their season opener on Aug. 31, Kent State and UTEP in late November.
Tennessee's 2024 opponents averaged 6.5 wins last season.
The FPI gave the Vols a 5.5% chance of winning the SEC and a 36.9% chance of reaching the newly expanded 12-team College Football Playoff with a 2.7% chance of winning the national championship.
–––––
– 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, @ByNoahTaylor, @RyanTSylvia, @Dale_Dowden, @ShayneP_Media.
–––––