Heather Dinich reveals College Football Playoff implications of Alabama-Tennessee

Whenever there is a top-10 matchup in the SEC, there will always be College Football Playoff implications on the line. Nothing will be different in Knoxville on Saturday, with No. 3 Alabama facing off against No. 6 Tennessee. Both are undefeated but there’s a slightly bigger buzz surrounding the Vols.

From a big-picture standpoint, Alabama is not the only important team remaining on Tennessee’s schedule. Georgia will be just as massive if they want to make the College Football Playoff. ESPN’s Heather Dinich explained why Josh Heupel’s squad needs to win at least one of those to have a shot at making the final four.

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“Tennessee has the best opportunity of anybody of any team in the country to impress the selection committee because they play Alabama and Georgia,” Dinich said. “They cannot go 0-2 in those games but they can go 1-1. Here’s why.

“If Tennessee can beat Alabama but it loses to Georgia, Tennessee can have a win over the SEC champs without even playing in the SEC Championship game. That’s huge. If they lose this game to Alabama and beat Georgia to win the East, they could get another shot at the Tide in the SEC Championship game. So this is a really remarkable opportunity, they just can’t blow it.”

In both of these scenarios, there would be a lot of firsts for Tennessee.

Getting a win over Alabama would be the first while Nick Saban was on the opposing sideline — currently on a 15-game losing streak. There have been some blowouts, there have been some heartbreaking losses. Tennessee will be looking to exorcise some demons Saturday at Neyland Stadium.

There has not been much success against Georgia either, losing five consecutive. Kirby Smart has dominated the SEC East rivalry, only dropping the first matchup between the two.

Finally, a possible SEC Championship appearance would be the first of the 21st century. Tennessee made it to Atlanta in 1997 and 1998, winning both over Auburn and Mississippi State respectively. Over 20 years later, Heupel has fans thinking of getting another conference ring.

Getting wins over either Alabama or Georgia is easier said than done. The two have consistently been the best programs in the country over the past few years. Tennessee will get their first shot at one of them Saturday with the Crimson Tide in town.