Advertisement

Here's where Tennessee football is ranked in AP Top 25 preseason poll

adam sparks, knoxville news sentinel
·2 min read

Tennessee football is ranked No. 12 in the AP Top 25 preseason poll, not quite as high as coaches voted the Vols.

It’s the best ranking for UT in the AP preseason poll since starting the 2020 season at No. 16.

But it’s only the fifth time in the past 15 seasons that the Vols have appeared in the AP preseason poll.

The AP poll, which is voted on by sports writers, was released Monday. Last week, UT was ranked No. 10 in the preseason USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll.

UT opens the season against Virginia on Sept. 2 (noon ET, ABC) at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.

Here’s who Vols play in Top 25

Three UT opponents will start the season in the AP Top 25.

Georgia, the two-time defending national champion, is No. 1. The Bulldogs come to Neyland Stadium on Nov. 18.Alabama is No. 4. The Crimson Tide will host the Vols on Oct. 21. And Texas A&M is ranked No. 23. UT will host the Aggies on Oct. 14.

Four additional UT opponents also received votes, including South Carolina, Kentucky, Florida and UT-San Antonio.

UT is one of six SEC teams in the AP Top 25, joining No. 1 Georgia, No. 4 Alabama, No. 5 LSU, No. 22 Ole Miss and No. 23 Texas A&M.

Can Vols climb poll like last season?

UT was unranked to start the 2022 season. But it climbed the AP poll to No. 6 at the end of the season.

The Vols have undergone notable turnover.

Joe Milton replaces Heisman Trophy candidate Hendon Hooker at quarterback.

Wide receivers Bru McCoy, Ramel Keyton, Squirrel White and Oregon transfer Dont’e Thornton replaces Biletnikoff Award winner Jalin Hyatt and All-SEC performer Cedric Tillman.

Miami transfer John Campbell was added to help fill the void from offensive tackle Darnell Wright, a first-round draft pick. And the Vols must develop a pass rusher after All-SEC edge rusher Byron Young went to the NFL.

But Milton and linebacker Aaron Beasley, the stars of the Orange Bowl win over Clemson, give the Vols a strong starting point for the 2023 season.

AP Top 25 preseason poll

1. Georgia (60)

2. Michigan (2)

3. Ohio State (1)

4. Alabama

5. LSU

6. Southern Cal

7 Penn State

8. Florida State

9. Clemson

10. Washington

11. Texas

12. Tennessee

13. Notre Dame

14. Utah

15. Oregon

16. Kansas State

17. TCU

18. Oregon State

19. Wisconsin

20. Oklahoma

21. North Carolina

22. Ole Miss

23. Texas A&M

24. Tulane

25. Iowa

First-place votes in parenthesis.

Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email adam.sparks@knoxnews.com. Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Here's where Tennessee football is ranked in AP Top 25 preseason poll