When Neyland Stadium quickly became smoke-filled from cigars, and one of the goalposts was later found in the murky Tennessee River after last year's win over Alabama, one thing seemed clear: Tennessee football was back, and it was all thanks to Josh Heupel.
Being back didn't mean returning to the national championship, even though the Volunteers football team was ranked as high as 1st in the College Football Playoff Poll at the end of October last season. It didn't even mean a return to the SEC Championship. Being back for Tennessee football meant rejoining relevancy. Moreover, it meant returning to beating some of their biggest rivals who, for decades, had collectively kept them from any shred of their former glory as one of the elites in the SEC.
Being back meant they had finally seemed to find a reliable head coach in Josh Heupel who could maneuver through such a treacherous conference schedule on a year-to-year basis, something the program had lacked over their last four tries. But by far the biggest accomplishment for the then-second-year head coach was beating Tennessee's rivals in Florida and Alabama, specifically, last season.
Florida and Alabama are crux of Josh Heupel's Tennessee football coaching tenure
The Volunteers had only beaten the Gators once, back in 2016, since 2005 before last year's victory, with both wins coming at Neyland Stadium. It's been since 2003 that Tennessee has won at The Swamp. As for Alabama, before last season, Tennessee hadn't beaten the Crimson Tide since 2006, with once again both victories coming at home in Neyland Stadium. The Volunteers haven't won in Tuscaloosa since 2003.
The Volunteers overshot any and all expectations last season because even if Tennessee football fans have still been living in 1998, instinctually or stubbornly, most deep down knew over the past two decades of the teams limitations. So when a win over Florida last season became a reality, it was as if a cloak had been removed, and a new reality, or rather an old one, had been revealed that made it possible for more things like it to be possible.
Now in Year 3, Tennessee football under Heupel is 5-2 headed into Week 9 of the season. By this time last year, the Volunteers were 7-0 and continually rising in the rankings, getting all the way to No. 1. They were still riding a wave of joy and wonder since beating the Crimson Tide, who they then thumped a much softer team in UT-Martin the following week at home, then later hosting an overzealous No. 19 Kentucky team, who they beat 44-6. The first blemish for the Volunteers didn't come until the week after, against the eventual national champions, when they traveled to Samford Stadium to face No. 3 Georgia.
The loss to the Bulldogs, who were coming off their first national championship since 1980, wasn't hard to take. It was the loss to South Carolina two weeks later that was insufferable and what really has brought into question Heupel's abilities on the road. That's why losing to what seemed like a less-talented Florida football team earlier this season and then losing to an Alabama football team they were leading by 13 at the half has been emphasized as areas of concern.
Can Heupel win pivotal SEC games on the road?
Most Tennessee football fans may be looking down upon this season now after suffering two crucial losses, in SEC play no less and against two of their biggest rivals and the sharpest thorns in their sides in Florida and Alabama. But No. 21 Tennessee is still in a stage of progression under Heupel, where yes, there are still hurdles to jump over, but they should be given realistic expectations, at least at this juncture.
While Tennessee football has made massive strides in improvement since Heupel's arrival, now what must become the next reality in this orange and white spectrum is winning consistently on the road, specifically in SEC play.
Excluding bowl games and neutral sites, Heupel is 5-7 on the road in his three seasons in Knoxville, with seven of those games being against ranked opponents, with only one being out of conference (No. 17 Pitt, 2022). In those losses, all have come in SEC play, with four coming from Florida and Alabama, two coming from Georgia, and one from South Carolina. Notice the trend?
Heupel has done well to use the confines of Neyland Stadium as a comfort zone for his team while at the same time making it an imposing threat for visiting teams. That's something his predecessors struggled with. The Volunteers are 17-3 at home and 23-10 overall in his three seasons thus far. They've already played five games at home this season, with three more to go, including one against top-ranked Georgia on November 18th. That will be a true test to see how opposing Neyland Stadium can be.
Kentucky can always be a step in right direction for Volunteers football
But as of right now, it's on to Kentucky for Tennessee. It will be only the third time for the Volunteers on the road this season and against another SEC East foe. This isn't a test like that of Florida or Alabama or even Georgia. It is a rivalry, although maybe considered mostly a one-sided one on the part of Kentucky. But still, it's another challenge to make right the perceived challenges of traveling on the road for Heupel and Tennessee.
In Heupel's first season, the Volunteers went back and forth with the Wildcats at Kroger Field, that had Tennessee leaving with a three-point victory. It was Tennessee's first win over a ranked opponent since 2018, which, ironically, was also against Kentucky.
Kentucky football games have been a bit of a “get-right” game for the Volunteers at times, so to speak. So, to cure any road weariness now with two straight games away from Good Ole Rocky Top in as many weeks, this could be the perfect opponent. Beating Kentucky, however, doesn't cure the road problems for Heupel and Tennessee football; it just keeps them from being exacerbated even further.
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