Heupel wants Vols to 'stay focused on what matters' ahead of first CFP rankings reveal

The month of November can make or break a team's college football season. Get hot and go on a winning streak, that momentum can take a unit deep into January with a chance at a national title. Suffer a loss, all of the dreams and goals from August come crashing down. Tennessee enters the final month of the regular season walking a tightrope if it wants to remain in contention for the College Football Playoff. The Vols are 6-2 overall, and historically, a three-loss team has yet to qualify for the 12-team bracket when it hasn't won its conference championship. Though the Vols are 3-2 in SEC play, they are still in the picture for the SEC title game due to the chaotic results the conference has produced thus far. Eight of the league's 16 teams have two conference losses or fewer. While UT knows where it stands when it comes to a potential trip to Atlanta in early December, it will get a clearer picture of its playoff hopes on Tuesday night when the CFP Committee releases its first rankings. Despite the postseason coming into view, Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel wants his group to remain where its feet are. "If you get caught up in things that don't matter, rankings coming out, whatever it might be, you have no chance to go finish and play the way that you need to every single week," Heupel said on Monday. "We got one opponent this week, it's Kentucky, it's the biggest game of the year because that's who we play. And we need to get ready to go play and focus on what we control. "And when you look at past results, controlling the controllables is a major factor in winning and losing. So, we need to stay focused on what matters and get ready to go play good football." The rivalry matchup with Kentucky is a massive tilt for both programs. The Wildcats, ranked No. 8 in the country by the AP Poll, come in with a 7-1 record and 5-1 in the SEC. Coming off of their open date, they boast signature wins over South Carolina and LSU. Under first-year head coach Will Stein, Kentucky is one of the top teams in the country in turnover margin and is posting just shy of 33 points per game. "Excited to get back into our stadium with our fans and playing a really good football team that is playing extremely well together," Heupel said. "You look at their ability to win multiple ways. Finish games, turnover margin, they've been elite. One of the least penalized teams in the league. Playing really smart in all three phases, so it'll be a great test and we are looking forward to it." Kickoff on Saturday in Neyland Stadium is set for 6:15 p.m. It will be the Vols' annual "Dark Mode" games as well as homecoming. Tipping Off Also on Tuesday evening, Tennessee basketball will officially open its season against Wofford. The Vols come into the season as the No. 8 team in the AP Poll following back-to-back seasons reaching the Elite Eight. However, only two rotational players, DeWayne Brown and Troy Henderson, return from last season's squad. Tennessee is set to be led by transfers Juke Harris, Terrence Hill Jr. and Tyler Lundblade in the back court and Miles Rubin in the front court. Vanderbilt transfer Jalen Washington is currently entrenched in a legal battle to become eligible, as he is one of numerous players nationwide to seek a fifth year of eligibility to mixed results. The new group of Vols is viewed to have a high offensive ceiling, but defense could be a struggle for the unit, especially early. In Tennessee's two preseason exhibitions against Xavier and Duke, it allowed 94.5 points per game in two losses. The Lady Vols basketball team gets underway Monday night against Duquesne. After a sour end to last season, they feature an entirely new roster with 13 transfers and a pair of freshmen.