KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Following an open date, Tennessee football has vaulted to No. 12 in both the Associated Press Top 25 and AFCA Coaches poll released Sunday.
The Volunteers (4-1, 1-1 SEC) are the seventh-highest ranked SEC team behind No. 4 Ole Miss, No. 5 Texas A&M, No. 6 Oklahoma, No. 8 Alabama, No. 10 Georgia and No. 11 LSU. UT moved up three spots from No. 15 in both polls.
Tennessee is ranked in the Coaches poll for the 54th consecutive week dating back to Sept. 11, 2022. Forty-nine of those 54 weeks have seen UT land in the top 20, including 24 straight polls. The current Coaches poll streak is the longest for the Vols since being ranked 92 consecutive weeks from Nov. 27, 1994 to Oct. 1, 2000.
The Vols head into Week 6 with the nation’s top scoring offense at 51.0 points per game, and they have scored over 40 points in five consecutive games for the first time in program history. Tennessee has scored 33 touchdowns, and four of those have come on the defensive side of the ball, which leads the SEC and ranks second in the FBS.
Tennessee takes on Arkansas (2-3, 0-1) at 4:15 p.m. ET Saturday in Neyland Stadium. The venue is sold out for the 24th consecutive game. The contest will be televised on SEC Network and is the Vols’ only home game during the month of October. Champions Weekend presented by Pilot is scheduled for Saturday.
Associated Press Top 25 (Oct. 5)
1. Ohio State (40)
2. Miami (21)
3. Oregon (5)
4. Ole Miss
5. Texas A&M
6. Oklahoma
7. Indiana
8. Alabama
9. Texas Tech
10. Georgia
11. LSU
12. Tennessee
13. Georgia Tech
14. Missouri
15. Michigan
16. Notre Dame
17. Illinois
18. BYU
19. Virginia
20. Vanderbilt
21. Arizona State
22. Iowa State
23. Memphis
24. USF
25. Florida State
AFCA Coaches Poll (Oct. 5)
1. Ohio State (59)
2. Oregon (3)
3. Miami (3)
4. Ole Miss
5. Texas A&M (1)
6. Oklahoma
7. Indiana
8. Alabama
9. Georgia
10. Texas Tech
11. LSU
12. Tennessee
13. Georgia Tech
14. Missouri
15. Michigan
16. Notre Dame
17. Illinois
18. BYU
19. Texas
20. Vanderbilt
21. Iowa State
22. Penn State
23. Arizona State
24. Virginia
25. Memphis