College Football Rankings 2020: Projected AP Top 25, Week 3

Tennessee looks ready to climb into the top 15 of this week’s AP Top 25 even though the SEC doesn’t begin play until the last weekend of September. The Volunteers were the last team ranked in the preseason poll, but a massive leap is in store once a slew of Big Ten and Pac-12 teams fall out of the poll this week.

Jeremy Pruitt’s team was ranked in the preseason SEC media poll as having the best shot to play spoiler to Georgia and Florida in the SEC East race. They will need a more consistent season from quarterback Jarrett Guarantano, who threw for more yards and touchdowns last season but saw his completion rate drop more than three percent from 2018 and his interception rate rise by more than 250 percent.

A key intersectional test against Oklahoma fell off the schedule when the SEC opted for a conference-only slate across the board. So too did opportunities for easy victories against Charlotte, Troy, and FCS Furman. Once games start in two weeks for Tennessee with a road opener at South Carolina, the Volunteers must be ready right out of the gate.