One of college football’s biggest critics, Joel Klatt, never once minced his words, calling out the Bulldogs for their playoff reality. “Georgia is playing for their life for all intents and purposes. Georgia probably cannot get in with another loss, and by probably, I mean, almost 100% cannot get in with another loss. there would have to be a ton of chaos for a 9-3 team to make this playoff,” Klatt said a few days before the much-talked-about game between Kirby Smart‘s Bulldogs and Josh Heupel‘s Tennessee volunteers. It looks like the Bulldogs took his words seriously and bounced back with a striking 31-17 win over the Vols. Although Georgia got its fading image back with this game, it has cost the Vols a lot. They are now ranked no. 11 in the coaches poll, and their AP Poll rank has also dropped from no. 6 to no. 10.

So what does Klatt say now? Yeah, Klatt pointed out a few things on the November 18th episode of the Joel Klatt show. He pointed out why Tennessee’s ship got sunk on Saturday at Neyland Stadium. “Let me just quickly say this about Tennessee: I think Tennessee is a hell of a football team. I really do. They are a top team, there’s no doubt. But they are not a top-level team, all right? And those two things are different. These are different. There are teams that can play great, and then there are teams that can win at the top level. And when I say on the top level, I mean like you can win a national championship. And I just don’t feel like that about Tennessee right now, and I’m going to tell you exactly why Tennessee right now is maxing out what they can do because of the way that they kind of play offense.”

Klatt pointed out a major takeaway from Tennessee’s loss to the Bulldogs, which was their offense. As per him, the Vols have won those games in which their offense was strong, but for the Georgia game, it was a little shaky. Besides that, Josh Heupel doesn’t have an elite quarterback right now.

Though Nico Iamaleava has leveled up his game, he’s not enough to carry the burden on his own. Morever, the Vols do not possess enough wide receivers. With that, they are lacking in their offensive punch currently. However, the question still remains the same: Can the Vols still make it to the playoffs? Even after losing to an SEC giant like the Georgia Bulldogs?

Can Josh Heupel still land a spot in the playoffs for the Tennessee Vols?

let’s address the elephant in the room now. If you’re a Vols fan, don’t panic, but admit that your playoff hopes are hanging by a thread right now. However, there is still some hope left for the Vols. The turning game, which started with a promising 17-14 lead, showcased offensive struggles and a pathetic defense, leading to a 17-31 loss.  However, the Vols are still in the race thanks to the expanded 12-team college football playoff setup.

Although there is a rough road ahead, Tennessee needs to win out and pray for chaos in the SEC and beyond. So, what can be the best-case scenario for them? It can come to reality if Alabama keeps winning, making the Vols’ head-to-head win shine while the Bulldogs and Ole Miss stumble.

Add a few more lucky stuff, like Indiana and Notre Dame slipping their grip. Only that can let Josh Heupel’s boys get in. Although it is just a superficial theory reflecting the current buzz in the football world, we have seen wild things happening for the longest time this season. We need to keep an eye on Knoxville; they are not done yet.