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'Both better teams than Tennessee' - Vols catch some shade from national college football analyst

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Zach Ragan | Last updated Jun 10, 2025 5:26 PM ET

If Tennessee Vols head coach Josh Heupel needs some extra bulletin board material this offseason, he received some this week via Fox Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt.

While discussing the Alabama Crimson Tide's most important game of the 2025 season (which Klatt believes is against Tennessee), Klatt noted that he thinks the South Carolina Gamecocks and the LSU Tigers are both better teams than Tennessee. He also seemed to suggest that Oklahoma is a better team than Tennessee.

"If [Alabama] were to just lose to Tennessee, who doesn't have Nico Iamaleava, and now you're about to go play (South Carolina QB) LaNorris Sellers and (LSU QB) Garrett Nussmeier," said Klatt. "I think South Carolina and LSU are both better teams than Tennessee. (Oklahoma QB) John Mateer is better than any option Tennessee has at quarterback, [Alabama] still has to play Oklahoma."

This is one of those takes that we'll just have to bookmark and revisit after the season, because there's no way right now to prove whether Klatt is right or wrong.

Heupel and his team (specifically the UT quarterbacks), however, can certainly use Klatt's words as motivation this offseason.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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