Weighing the Vols' chances against their remaining schedule: Week 7

Well that was fun. The Land Sharks look downright frightening, Missouri falters further, and Alabama is beginning to look like a particularly generous Grandma in wolf's clothing. So how do we feel about the Vols' remaining schedule? We rank the remaining games, again with our own 5-30 point scale.

10/18/14: @Ole Miss (6-0, 3-0 SEC, #3)

• Week 1: Beat Boise State, 35-13.
• Week 2: Beat Vanderbilt, 41-3.
• Week 3: Beat LA-Lafayette, 56-15.
• Week 4: Bye.
• Week 5: Beat Memphis, 24-3.
• Week 6: Beat Alabama, 23-17.
• Week 7: Beat Texas A&M at College Station, 35-20.
• Week 8: VOLS.
• Week 9: At LSU.
• Week 10: Auburn.
• Week 11: Presbyterian.
• Week 12: Bye.
• Week 13: At Arkansas.
• Week 14: Mississippi St.
• Chances of a Vols win (on a scale from 5-30): I'm moving this down to 8 because the one thing we didn't need was for Ole Miss to be dominant against A&M and then be given a reason to be upset when they look up at the polls and find they're right at #3 where they were the week before. Oh, and the strength of the team? A dominant defensive line. Will Just Worley survive? Will he have time to throw? Will we be able to run a play?

10/25/14: Alabama (5-1, 2-1 SEC, #7)

• Week 1: Beat West Virginia, 33-23.
• Week 2: Beat Florida Atlantic, 41-0.
• Week 3: Beat Beat Souther Miss, 52-12.
• Week 4: Beat Florida, 42-21.
• Week 5: Bye.
• Week 6: Lost to Ole Miss, 23-17.
• Week 7: Beat themselves, but also beat Arkansas, 14-13.
• Chances of a Vols win (on a scale from 5-30): 13. Oh, Alabama. This is a new development. Nick Saban is slowly turning into Steve Spurrier, what with the faces and all. What is it? Irritable Bowl Syndrome? Kiffin stones? A particularly nasty cocktail of OCD, MPD, and ED? Whatever it is, you are not yourself. Don't mind us. We'll just sit here quietly by the bed feigning concern until the estate is up for grabs. The scalpel? Oh, nothing. What's this button do?

11/01/14: @South Carolina (3-3, 2-3 SEC, NR)

• Week 1: Got pinned against Texas A&M at home, 52-28.
• Week 2: Beat East Carolina, 33-23.
• Week 3: Beat Georgia, 38-35.
• Week 4: Beat Vanderbilt, 48-34.
• Week 5: Lost to Missouri, 21-20.
• Week 6: Lost to Kentucky, 45-38.
• Week 7: Bye.
• Chances of a Vols win (on a scale from 5-30): This one's lobbying hard for 22 after what Missouri did against Georgia this week (NOTHING), but for now, I'm holding steady at 21.

11/8/14: Bye

11/15/14: Kentucky (5-1, 2-1 SEC, NR)

• Week 1: Beat UT Martin, 59-14.
• Week 2: Beat Ohio, 20-3.
• Week 3: Barely lost to Florida in the Swamp, 36-30 in triple overtime.
• Week 4: Bye.
• Week 5: Beat Vanderbilt, 17-7.
• Week 6: Beat South Carolina, 45-38.
• Week 7: Beat UL Monroe, 48-14.
• Chances of a Vols win (on a scale from 5-30): Still at 20. I'll remind you of this quote from last week: "They have UL Monroe and LSU in the next two weeks, but then they have three currently ranked opponents in a row: Mississippi State, Missouri, and Georgia. My prediction is that we think nothing of this week, that the LSU game is enough "Kentucky" that we think, "Yeah, these guys aren't ripe yet." But then they get beat by some good teams three weeks in a row and we're right back to dismissing them. And the trap will be set. DON'T TOUCH." All of that still applies except the Missouri part.

11/22/14: Missouri (4-2, 1-1 SEC, #23)

• Week 1: Beat South Dakota State, 38-18.
• Week 2: Beat Toledo, 49-24.
• Week 3: Beat UCF, 38-10.
• Week 4: Lost to Indiana, 31-27.
• Week 5: Beat South Carolina, 21-20.
• Week 6: Bye.
• Week 7: Got shut out and gave up 34 to a Todd Gurley-less Georgia, losing 34-0.
• Chances of a Vols win (on a scale from 5-30): 23. Best win: a one point victory over a South Carolina team that looks increasingly like it just got lucky against Georgia. So I'm dialing this up to 23. Yes, right where the Florida game was. Why do you ask?

11/29/14: Vanderbilt (2-5, 0-4 SEC, NR)

• Week 1: Lost to Temple, 37-7.
• Week 2: Lost to Ole Miss, 41-3.
• Week 3: Beat UMass, 34-31.
• Week 4: Lost to South Carolina, 48-34.
• Week 5: Lost to Kentucky, 17-7.
• Week 6: Lost to Georgia, 44-17.
• Week 7: Beat Charlie Southern. By a point. 21-20.
• Chances of a Vols win (on a scale from 5-30): Pushing up to 25. This goes here:
  

The next two weeks are going to test our collective mettle, the precise definition of which, by the way, is strangely comforting: "A person's ability to cope well with difficulties or to face a demanding situation in a spirited and resilient way." Hey, let's do that spirited resilience thing. Because although I fear we're going to get pounded (and pinned) against Ole Miss, the rest of the games present varying degrees of opportunities. Alabama may prove to be a Maxim 1 game. We may be (are likely?) better than Vandy and Missouri. And Kentucky and South Carolina may be toss ups. We'll see as we get closer. But first, fortify your mettle, boys and girls.

The Vols' chances of winning each of the rest of its games, on a scale from 5-30: