Vols weren't even the best team in the state on Saturday

When you lose a game like Tennessee did on Saturday night, there's nothing mysterious about your answer: “All of our goals are still ahead of us.”

That's true – unless one of your goals was to win every game. But more sensible goals are still in play.

The Vols can make the College Football Playoff. They can win the national championship — as unlikely as that may seem when they lost 19-14 to Arkansas on Saturday night at Reynolds Razorbacks Stadium in Fayetteville.

On a day full of surprises – some more stunning than Tennessee's loss – we were reminded of how drastically college football can change from one Saturday to the next. Five top 10 teams lost.

Alabama, ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press poll, lost to Vanderbilt. How is that even possible? But it happened.

Tide fans took over Vanderbilt Stadium like so many opposing fans do. But in a bizarre twist, Vanderbilt took over the game. The Commodores' 40-35 victory was nothing unusual. They were better trained and better prepared. They surpassed Alabama.

I was as surprised as anyone by the game's development. I was just as surprised by what happened to Tennessee.

Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised. Not to mention, three of Tennessee's dominant wins came against vastly inferior teams – Chattanooga, overrated NC State and Kent State. Or that Oklahoma's offense was decimated by injuries to the offensive line and receiving corps. I was convinced the Vols were the right fit.

Maybe they are — and the Arkansas game was an aberration. But I'm as confident in Tennessee's shortcomings now as I was in its strengths in the first month of the season.

Arkansas had played two tough games in a row against Auburn and Texas A&M. Tennessee had two weeks to prepare for the Razorbacks. So how did things go so wrong against a 13.5-point underdog who seemingly couldn't keep up well against Tennessee?

Tennessee coach Josh Heupel has rightly earned a reputation as a great play-caller. That includes Arkansas offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino, a former head coach in college and the NFL. But on this night, Petrino did more with much less.

Heupel didn't seem confident, which was also reflected in his lack of offensive creativity. Quarterback Nico Iamaleava didn't seem confident either. That was never clearer when he went out of bounds on the final play of the game, when UT's only hope of winning was to throw a pass into the end zone and hope for the best. Leaving was like waving a white flag.

Arkansas repeatedly picked off Tennessee's best offensive line, so Iamaleava was under duress most of the night, which explains why he only managed 158 yards on 17 completions in 28 attempts. I expected that he would sometimes overcome such pressure with his running skills. However, his volatility was never evident and he played less on the run than as a passer.

Close games are where star quarterbacks have to shine brightest. Iamaleava couldn't do that. Ironically, Arkansas backup quarterback Malachi Singleton, filling in for injured starter Taylen Green, led the game-winning drive.

Tennessee, like so many other SEC teams, remains a playoff contender. Texas is the only undefeated team in the conference. Ole Miss, Missouri, LSU, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee all have a loss.

UT's games against Alabama and Georgia are more important now than ever because there is less room for error. You can't expect to get into the playoffs with more than two losses.

ADAMS: Poor decisions by Josh Heupel and Nico Iamaleava doom Tennessee football against Arkansas

Tennessee didn't resemble a playoff team on Saturday. A defense that looked so dominant against previous opponents gave up more than 400 yards. And the pass defense, which was considered questionable in the preseason, looked equally questionable against the Razorbacks, who completed 21 of 30 passes for 297 yards.

After UT's 4-0 start, I thought it could beat both Alabama and Georgia. But as bad as it played against Arkansas, you can't even assume that Vanderbilt is a sure win.

The Commodores, not the Vols, were the best team in the state on Saturday.

John Adams is a senior columnist. He can be reached at 865-342-6284 or [email protected]. Follow him at: twitter.com/johnadamskns.

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