Can Tennessee make the SEC championship game? Closer look at Vols' chances to contend for the title

The Tennessee Volunteers come into the final week of the regular season with a 9-2 (5-2 SEC) record. Due to the chaos that was seen in the SEC this weekend, the two-loss Volunteers are seen to have a chance to make the SEC Championship game.

However, to do so, certain things are going to have to happen.

Here is what needs to happen in the final week of the season to put the Tennessee Volunteers into the SEC Championship game.

How could the Tennessee Volunteers get into the SEC Championship game?

1. The Volunteers win their game

Unsurprisingly, the first thing that the Volunteers need to do to get them a spot in the SEC Championship game is to win their final game of the season.

But, this is easier said than done. As it is rivalry week, the Volunteers are playing State rivals, the Vanderbilt Commodores.

In any other year, this would be an easy win. But this Vanderbilt team is unlike the others. Diego Pavia has been able to lead this team to some historic wins, which include the infamous win over the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Vanderbilt will not go down without a fight and will want to ruin their rival's season. Beating the Commodores is the priority for Josh Heupel's side, and it should be the only thing they think of.

Defeating Vanderbilt will give the Volunteers a 6-2 record in the SEC.

#2 Texas A&M Lose

Coming into the final week, the Texas A&M Aggies are 6-1 in conference play.

In the final week, they face the Texas Longhorns (who are also in the race for the SEC Championship game). This is a long-awaited rivarly game, which Tennessee would want the Longhorns to be victorious in.

If Texas are able to defeat their rivals, the Longhorns will make the SEC Championship game, while the Aggies will fall to 6-2. This will tie them with both the Georgia Bulldogs (who will not play an SEC opponent in the final week) and the Volunteers.

#3 The Tie Breaks

If the three teams are tied for second place in the conference, who would make it into the SEC Championship game?

It would not be Tennessee. Both the Bulldogs and the Aggies have defeated higher-ranked opponents, and so would not win the tiebreak.

If the Aggies were to defeat Texas, the Volunteers would still not make it into the Championship game, alongside the Longhorns, due to the same tiebreak reasons.

To sum up, while the Tennessee Volunteers look like they have a chance to make the SEC Championship game, it is unlikely for them to do this, even if the results go their way.