Bad news: The head coach of the Vols shed tears as four of his star players made a final decision to terminate their huge contracts.

Bad news: The head coach of the Vols shed tears as four of his star players made a final decision to terminate their huge contracts.

The bad news is that four of the Vols‘ top players have decided to end their enormous contracts, causing the head coach to cry.

For the second year in a row and the third time in Barnes’ career, the Vols are among the last 16 teams in the NCAA Tournament standings during March Madness.

However, Tennessee still finds itself in a familiar trap for this round of March Madness. The Vols, ranked second in the program, will make their tenth Sweet 16 appearance when they take on Creighton, ranked third, on Friday. Tennessee only made it to the Elite Eight once, and that was under Bruce Pearl. TN has never advanced to the Final Four.

Barnes only had one Final Four trip, at Texas in 2003. For the ninth time, he is in the Sweet 16.

In this episode of “The Volunteer State,” Mike Wilson and John Adams of the News Sentinel, together with Blake Toppmeyer of the USA TODAY Network, assess the obstacles that stand in Tennessee’s way of reaching the Final Four.

greatest danger to Tennessee making it to the March Madness Final Four?
Wilson: INDEPENDENT. The greatest danger comes from the boilermakers. Why? due to Zach Edey’s existence. He’s the only one with a large man like that.

In the regular season, Purdue defeated the Vols 71-67. Equipped with the 7-foot-4 Edey in the post, the Boilermakers would continue to provide a matchup challenge in a possible Elite Eight contest. In their opening two tournament games, the Boilermakers haven’t encountered any technical difficulties. Though the Vols’ next challenge, assuming they advance, would undoubtedly be more difficult than Creighton’s in the Sweet 16,.

Adams: CRIGHTON. Even if Purdue is performing like a No. 1 seed, the Boilermakers’ past is too strong to ignore. Despite having a number of strong teams since 1980, they haven’t made it to the Final Four, so they can feel the pressure in an Elite Eight match. Tennessee will face increased pressure in the Sweet 16 to qualify for its first Elite Eight since 2010. Edey wouldn’t choke, but his supporting cast probably would. Given my doubts about Purdue, I believe Creighton to be Tennessee’s greatest obstacle.

First place: Creighton. When the Blue Jays faced a late-game deficit against Oregon in the second round, their veteran roster showed composure under duress. On any given night, four of their players are capable of scoring more than 20 points. The Jays can’t be easily defeated if the four players combine for more than 70 points, even though their scoring punch is limited to those four players. I like their well-balanced scoring punch against Tennessee’s Dalton Knecht-led superstar ball.