Following a lackluster performance in the first round of the College Football Playoff, Tennessee lost to Ohio State in a game that the Volunteers seemed to have never shown up for, causing social media to go haywire. By a final score of 42-17, Tennessee's offense had just 256 yards of total offense, compared to Ohio State's 473-yard offensive explosion.

On the ground, these teams were evenly matched, as Tennesse finished the game with just four yards fewer than Ohio State.

However, the major difference was through the air, as Ohio State's Will Howard outshined Tennessee's redshirt freshman Nico Iamaleava.

Given the national broadcasting of this game, college football fans nationwide had access to watch this one-sided affair. And because of that, those same people had social media buzzing about Tennessee's poor performance.

Tennessee fans storm social media over College Football Playoff performance

Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) catches a touchdown pass as Tennessee defensive back Rickey Gibson III (1) defends during the first half of their College Football Playoff game at Ohio Stadium on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024 in Columbus, Ohio.
© Samantha Madar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When teams underperform, especially on the national stage, fans typically storm to social media and blast whatever is flooding their skulls.

And with as much controversy around the CFP as there is, fans get even more upset if one of the 12 teams underperforms, as Tennessee did.

Now, when those teams are in the same conference as the underperforming program, fans go nuts.

That was evident following Tennesse's performance in the first round of the CFP against Ohio State.

Most fans kept their posts on social media about the teams in the CFP, however, former Michigan football player Taylor Lewan didn't waste the opportunity to take a shot at his old rival Ohio State on X.

“Wow, Ohio State already scored more points in the first quarter than they did in the entire game against Michigan,” Lewan wrote. “Tennessee needs to realize they are playing the Big Ten not some SEC school.”

Though the post was mostly pointed at the Michigan and Ohio State rivalry, the Big Ten and SEC rivalry caught a stray shot, too.

Lewan wasn't the only one noting the difference in conferences after a popular video of Elon Musk flooded social media. In the video, Musk expresses his distaste toward the SEC, and social media was loving it.

Social media seemed to love that video, but there was plenty of SEC banter.

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Another user added to the SEC banter, saying, “If this is how bad the 10-2 SEC teams are imagine the 9-3 teams.”

Now, while some posts had specific targets, most users just had fun poking at the losing team, a tradition as old as time.

With their playoff hopes crushed after the first round, the Tennessee football program should probably take a group hiatus from social media after fans erupted following their loss.