2017 SEC Country Power Poll (Week 11): Rocky Top hits rock bottom
The SEC Country Power Poll has a new cellar dweller. Welcome to the basement, Tennessee.
The Volunteers (4-6, 0-6 SEC) suffered a 50-17 loss at Missouri in Week 11, a blowout that led to the firing of coach Butch Jones. Former Michigan, San Diego State and Ball State coach Brady Hoke steps in as interim coach for the Vols, who have nowhere to go but up — in our rankings, anyway.
There was optimism in Knoxville heading into the 2017 season. The Vols were coming off back-to-back seasons with nine victories and were picked to finish third in the SEC East in the preseason media poll.
Tennessee ranked No. 6 in the SEC Power Poll after the first two weeks of the season following a double-overtime win over Georgia Tech and a romp over Indiana State. But that’s when things started to slide.
- Also see: How the SEC fared in The Associated Press poll
- How the SEC fared in the Amway Coaches Poll
- Shute: How I voted in AP Top 25 following Week 11
The Vols dropped to No. 9 after losing at Florida in Week 3 on a Hail Mary as time expired and slipped to No. 10 after a narrow win over Massachusetts in Week 4.
Week 5 marked Tennessee’s 41-0 loss to Georgia, a result that moved the Vols down to No. 12 in our poll. After an open date in Week 6, Tennessee rose to No. 10. The Vols then slid to No. 11 after losing to South Carolina in Week 7.
Tennessee jumped two spots to No. 8 despite getting routed at Alabama in Week 8, which was more a reflection on the struggles of Ole Miss, Arkansas, Vanderbilt and Missouri than any confidence in Tennessee.
Kentucky knocked the Vols down to No. 12 with its last-minute win in Week 9, and Tennessee remained in that spot after beating Southern Mississippi in Week 10.
Now, after getting trucked by Mizzou, the Vols have found their way to the bottom.
Elsewhere, there wasn’t much movement in our rankings after the games of Week 11.
Auburn (8-2, 6-1) leaped up to No. 2 over Georgia (9-1, 6-1) after an easy head-to-head win at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Missouri (5-5, 2-4) moved up a spot to No. 9 by extending its winning streak to four games, a span in which the Tigers have scored 215 points.
Be sure to check back each Sunday night to see how our SEC Country Power Poll voters rank the 14 conference teams.
Your Week 11 SEC Country Power Poll rankings
Results are below:| RANK | TEAM | POINTS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Alabama (13 - 1) | 337 |
| 2 |  Auburn (10 - 4) | 311 |
| 3 |  Georgia (13 - 2) | 288 |
| 4 |  Mississippi State (9 - 4) | 255 |
| 5 |  LSU (9 - 4) | 239 |
| 6 |  South Carolina (9 - 4) | 187 |
| 7 |  Texas A&M (7 - 6) | 173 |
| 8 |  Kentucky (7 - 6) | 161 |
| 9 |  Missouri (7 - 6) | 124 |
| 10 |  Ole Miss (6 - 6) | 114 |
| 11 |  Florida (4 - 7) | 75 |
| 12 |  Arkansas (4 - 8) | 54 |
| 13 |  Vanderbilt (5 - 7) | 30 |
| 14 |  Tennessee (4 - 8) | 18 |
This week's voters:
Alex Hickey (SEC Country)
Alex Martin Smith (SEC Country)
Andrew Astleford (SEC Country)
Ben Wolk (SEC Country)
Blake Morgan
Brandon Walker (SEC Country)
Chip Towers (DawgNation)
Chris Kirschner (SEC Country)
Christopher Walsh (SEC Country)
Eric Bolin (SEC Country)
Joe Mussatto (SEC Country)
Jordan Mcpherson (SEC Country)
Justin Ferguson (SEC Country)
Ken Bradley (SEC Country)
Lauren Shute (SEC Country)
Marq Burnett (SEC Country)
Mike Bambach
Nick Suss
Pete Scantlebury
Ryan Young
Ryan Young
Sam Spiegelman
Seth Emerson (DawgNation)
Thomas Neumann (SEC Country)
Trent Shadid (SEC Country)
Zach Abolverdi (SEC Country)
