Five games remain in the regular season for No. 11 Tennessee (6-1, 3-1 SEC). The Vols will next play Saturday at South Carolina (3-3, 1-3 SEC) in Week 8.
Tennessee's remaining regular-season schedule also consists of home games against Kentucky and LSU, while playing road games at Texas A&M and Vanderbilt. The Vols will have an open date on Oct. 31 in Week 9.
Ahead of Week 8 games, Erick Smith of USA TODAY released updated College Football Playoff and bowl game projections.
He projects UCLA as a No. 7 seed and would host No. 10 seed Tennessee in the first round at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. First-round games are hosted by higher seeds Dec. 18-19.
The Vols have appeared in one College Football Playoff since its inception for the 2014 season. Ohio State defeated Tennessee, 42-17, in the College Football Playoff first round on Dec. 21, 2024 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
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This article originally appeared on Vols Wire: Tennessee projected for CFP first-round game at Rose Bowl