The Tennessee Volunteers found themselves in drama once again when head coach Josh Heupel made the decision to dismiss Boo Carter from the program. The Vols had given Carter a second chance, but he still wasn’t fully buying in. After being removed from the team, he made serious allegations toward Heupel.
“I’ve been doing everything I could. I told him I was hurt. He wanted me to play hurt throughout the whole season. I don’t know, how he’s putting it is making it sound like the stuff that happened in fall camp still [has an impact in November],” Carter said.
Despite the outside noise, the Vols knew they had a real chance to win in Gainesville for the first time in over two decades. On Saturday, they did exactly that. After the game, Tennessee QB Joey Aguilar made it clear how special the moment was.
“Man, it’s awesome to know how much it means to the program and the community, Tennessee, Knoxville. To go out there and play how we played and pretty much dominate the whole game and to know everybody is excited and happy for the fans and stuff is a good feeling,” Aguilar said.
However, following all of the feel-good reactions, Vols reporter Wes Rucker decided to keep the College Football Playoff conversation grounded.
“People keep asking, and enough have asked, that I think I'll say now what I would have said tomorrow. I do not see a single scenario where Tennessee has a CFP-caliber resume, no matter what happens against Vandy. Not enough big wins. But still, enjoy tonight. Program needed it,” Rucker posted.
The Vols remain without a ranked win, and in the three opportunities they’ve had, two were completely squandered. Tennessee is a few critical mistakes away from finding itself in the CFP for the second consecutive season.
However, with three losses, that goal simply isn’t realistic. Tennessee can still play spoiler against Diego Pavia and the Vanderbilt Commodores next weekend inside Neyland Stadium.