Jan 10, 2022; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Greg McElroy attends the 2022 CFP college football national championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Greg McElroy Shares Honest Tennessee Football Ranking

Originally posted on Tennessee Volunteers on SI
By Caleb Sisk | Last updated Sep 5, 2025 1:56 PM ET

The Tennessee Volunteers are set for their second game of the football season, as they are set to take on the ETSU Buccaneers. This game will be one to watch for the Tennessee Volunteers, as they are likely going to win in huge fashion before playing their first conference game.

They just wrapped up with the Syracuse Orange, which they walked away with a 45-26 win. In this contest, they proved a lot to the Tennessee Volunteers fan base and some analysts.

Greg McElroy shared his take on the situation following the contest, as he previously had the Tennessee Vols ranked at 21 entering the game. Here is what he had to say about their newest ranking in his book.

Where Does Greg McElroy Rank Tennessee?

“At number 13, I have Tennessee,” said McElroy on a new edition of Always College Football. “I had them at 21 in the preseason. I’ve moved them all the way up, and I know people will say, ‘Well, Syracuse is not high-level competition,' but it was how they looked. I no longer have significant questions about Joey Aguilar, and how comfortable he’s going to be in the offense. I thought he made a lot of great throws in this game against Syracuse. Some down the field, low percentage, requiring big time accuracy, hitting guys in stride. I felt like he was actually better on the downfield in the one game than what I’ve seen from Tennessee in the last two years. Is there stuff to clean up? Absolutely. But I was pretty encouraged with what I saw from the offensive line. I knew the defense would be good, and they constantly harassed Steve Angeli, but I’m really excited about what I saw from Tennessee’s offense. I think that’s a replicable recipe and something they can continue to build on moving forward.”