Paul Finebaum defends Tennessee as College Football Playoff team after loss to Georgia

The Tennessee Volunteers dropped their second game of the season on Saturday, losing on the road in Athens. With that, their hopes for the College Football Playoff have become much less clear moving forward.

ESPN’s Paul Finebaum made an appearance on SportsCenter on the Sunday following the game. There, while playing a game called Paul-In, he explained why he still thinks that the Volunteers are still in a good position to make it to the Playoff.

“I’m Paul in but I need to explain,” Paul Finebaum said. “People are saying, ‘He’s just saying this because he’s a graduate.’ I still have a couple of incompletes from the late 70s. So I’m a little nervous they’ll recall my degree, but the point is I think Tennessee will ultimately get in. Right now, they are not. Tuesday night you won’t see them in the field.”

Tennessee now has two losses on the season, both of which came in SEC play. That also makes the Volunteers one of five SEC schools with two losses this season, to go along with one-loss Texas, in a crowded field of SEC teams alone competing for the Playoff.

The most likely case right now is that Georgia, who had fallen out of the projected bracket, will jump ahead of Tennessee thanks to the head-to-head result. However, it will be up for debate how high they should move given that the Bulldogs have losses to Alabama and Ole Miss, both of whom are already ahead in the standings.

“I still believe there will be a number of upsets and I, frankly, believe Tennessee has done enough,” Finebaum said. “That win over Alabama is gonna carry a lot of favor. Losing at Georgia, no crime. Georgia has lost a few times as well. So, Tennessee in the end will get in. Not right now, though.”

From here, the Volunteers will need to avoid a third loss on the season if they do want to stay in the Playoff race. That starts next week with a home game against UTEP. After that, the Volunteers will finish their season on the road against a tough Vanderbilt team.

The next College Football Playoff Selection Committee rankings are scheduled to be revealed on Tuesday night. That will give a clearer picture both of where Tennessee stands moving forward and of who still has a chance to make a run at the postseason this year.