'The combination of all three has hurt the Vols' - Tennessee takes a tumble in ESPN's latest college football power rankings

The Tennessee Vols, as expected, took a tumble this week in ESPN's latest college football power rankings.

Tennessee dropped to 5-2 on the season after a 37-20 loss to Alabama on the road.

The Volunteers played sloppy in the loss. Dropped passes, untimely penalties, and clock mismanagement doomed Tennessee's chances against the Crimson Tide.

Tennessee falls 11 spots in ESPN's college football power rankings

Tennessee fell from No. 11 to No. 18 in ESPN's college football power rankings following the loss to Alabama.

ESPN's Andrea Adelson pointed out that Tennessee's defense, some turnovers, and the run game not being as productive as it was last year have combined to hurt the Volunteers in some "big-time moments".

"If there is one key difference between the Vols this year and last year, it is their defense," noted Adelson. "Simply put, Tennessee is not as consistent on that side of the ball as it needs to be -- ranking among the worst in the SEC in a host of categories. While the Vols held Alabama to under 400 yards of offense in a 37-20 loss, there were also too many big plays given up -- particularly on key downs.

"Joey Aguilar has been steady, but he has also had turnovers at crucial moments in games. It happened again Saturday -- Alabama got him to intentionally ground the ball for a safety, and then a 99-yard pick-sick at the end of the first half ultimately doomed them. The run game is not nearly as productive as a year ago either, and the combination of all three has hurt the Vols in some big-time moments. Having said that, this is still one of the best offenses in the country. If the defense can find ways to be more productive, Tennessee could be in the mix for an at-large CFP berth down the stretch."

The Vols are still averaging 200 yards per game on the ground (compared to 241 yards per game through the first seven games last season), so the run game has still been effective for Tennessee (UT has been more productive throwing the ball this season, passing for 310 yards per game compared to 221 yards per game last season).

Tennessee needs to get better defensively -- specifically the back end of their defense -- and they need to be more consistent on offense in SEC games (penalties are still killing drives at times). If they can tighten up in those areas, then the schedule is somewhat favorable down the stretch -- though a matchup against the Florida Gators in the Swamp looms large.

window.addEventListener('message', function (event) {if (event.data.totalpoll && event.data.totalpoll.action === 'resizeHeight') {document.querySelector('#totalpoll-iframe-1476').height = event.data.totalpoll.value;}}, false);document.querySelector('#totalpoll-iframe-1476').contentWindow.postMessage({totalpoll: {action: 'requestHeight'}}, '*');