KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – One of the most highly-anticipated weekends of the year has arrived as No. 11/10 Tennessee and No. 7/7 Alabama prepare to face off in one of college football’s most iconic rivalry games on The Third Saturday in October inside of a sold-out Neyland Stadium.

After nearly a month away from Knoxville, the Volunteers returned to Neyland Stadium with a thrilling 23-17 overtime victory over rival Florida last weekend to kickoff a four-game homestand.

NEYLAND STADIUM, PRESERVED BY PILOT

Earlier this year, Tennessee Athletics and Pilot broke new ground in college sports by entering a multi-year partnership that preserves the iconic venue’s name and enhances the stadium experience for future generations. Under the terms of the agreement, which is slated for up to 20 years and could extend further, the names of Neyland Stadium and Shields-Watkins Field remain unchanged. Pilot is designated as the presenting partner of the Neyland Stadium renovation project and the official travel stop of Tennessee Athletics.

Neyland Stadium. Home of the Vols. Proudly preserved by Pilot.

BROADCAST INFO

Saturday’s game will be televised on ABC with Sean McDonough (PxP), Greg McElroy (analyst) and Molly McGrath (sideline reporter) on the call. Coverage will begin at 3:30 p.m.

Fans can listen to Tennessee’s official radio broadcast on the Vol Network (Local: WIVK-FM 107.7/WNML-FM 99.1) over 65 stations across the state of Tennessee and the southeast, SiriusXM (Ch. 119) and the SiriusXM app (Ch. 191), as well as the Varsity App. A live audio stream of the broadcast will also be available on UTSports.com​ and the Tennessee Athletics App. Vol Network celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2024. 

Bob Kesling (PxP), VFL Pat Ryan (analyst) and Brent Hubbs (analyst) will call the action, with VFL Jayson Swain handling sideline duties for the Vol Network radio broadcast. The Big Orange Countdown pregame show begins two hours prior to kickoff at 1:30 p.m. The pregame show is hosted by John Wilkerson, Brent Hubbs, VFL Jayson Swain and a rotating VFL special guest each week. 

The Spanish broadcast is available locally on WNML-AM 990 with Carlos Lopez (play-by-play) and VFL Fuad Reveiz on the call. That version is also available on UTSports.com and the Tennessee Athletics app. 

GAMEDAY INFO / TIMELINE

For the most up-to-date information on Tennessee’s 2024 gameday policies, please visit the Tennessee Football Gameday Information page on UTSports.com.

The gameday timeline as well as other important information is listed below.

Marty & McGee – 9-10 a.m. (Ayres Hall Lawn)

SEC Nation – 10 a.m. – Noon (Ayres Hall Lawn)

Will Call Opens at Gate 21 – 11:30 p.m.

Truly’s Tailgate Opens – 11:30 a.m.

Vol Village Opens – 12 p.m.

Vol Walk – 1:20 p.m.

Gates Open – 1:45 p.m.

Pride of the Southland Band March – 1:50 p.m. (Pedestrian Bridge)

Pride of the Southland Band Pregame Performance Begins – 3:31 p.m.

National Anthem/Flyover – 3:34 p.m.

*Flyover will feature two F-15 aircrafts from the Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro, N.C.

Vols Run Through the T – 3:42 p.m.

Kickoff – 3:45 p.m.

NEW NEYLAND STADIUM FAN ENHANCEMENTS FOR 2024

A host of new fan enhancements are in place at Neyland Stadium this season.

RockyTopWiFi, Neyland Stadium’s Wi-Fi system, debuted during the 2023 season and is fully functional throughout Neyland Stadium for the 2024 campaign. Fans are encouraged to utilize the network and stay connected on their mobile devices during the game.

Other fan enhancements include but are not limited to upgraded speakers, new televisions, trading cards, commemorative tickets and various concession upgrades throughout the stadium.

For more information on all the new Neyland Stadium fan enhancements for this season, click HERE.

TICKETS AND PARKING

Tickets for Saturday’s game are officially sold out. Tickets and parking passes to all Tennessee Athletics events, including football, are digital and can be accessed through a mobile device to improve security and reduce the risk of ticket fraud as well as make the process more convenient for fans.

Fans will gain admission into Neyland Stadium via a unique QR code which will be scanned directly from a mobile device. For quick and easy entry into Tennessee Athletics venues, fans are encouraged to download the Tennessee Athletics app from the App Store (iPhone) and Google Play (Android). Your mobile device is the ticket on gameday. All valid digital tickets will display a moving barcode or a hold near reader (tap-and-go) icon. PLEASE NOTE: SCREENSHOTS OF TICKETS WILL NOT SCAN AT THE GATE AND WILL NOT ALLOW ENTRY!

Printed PDF tickets will no longer be issued or accepted for entry at any Tennessee Athletics venue. The only authorized sources for tickets to Tennessee Athletics events are the Tennessee Athletics Ticket Office, AllVols.com, the venue box office where the athletic event is taking place and Ticketmaster.

A complete step-by-step guide on how to best access and use your digital tickets and parking passes, including diagrams and FAQ is available here.

TENNESSEE ATHLETICS APP

Fans are encouraged to download the new and improved Tennessee Athletics App, which houses the GBO Zone, allowing fans to play trivia, take part in stadium light shows and much more. 

Search “Tennessee Athletics” in the Apple or Google Play Store or use this LINK to download.

GAMEDAY EVENTS & ACTIVITIES

SEC Nation: SEC Nation Presented by Johnsonville, the SEC Network’s weekly, traveling pre-game show, as well as the hit show Marty & McGee Presented by Old Trapper, will be on location in Knoxville for Saturday’s contest.

Both shows will originate from the Ayres Hall lawn. SEC Nation airs live from 10 a.m.-noon ET on SEC Network and follows Marty & McGee, which airs from 9-10 a.m. ET. For more information, click HERE.

Vol Village Presented by Toyota: Vol Village presented by Toyota, serves as the ideal spot to view the Vol Walk and the Pride of Southland Band march. Admission is free to all fans with or without a game ticket. Located across from Circle Park, Vol Village features live music, food trucks and beverage stations, interactive displays and fun activities for all ages.

Vol Village will highlight a new artist or band during each home game with a pregame concert series, providing Vol fans with the ultimate pregame atmosphere. The Powell Brothers will be this week’s featured artist. Vol Village opens at noon for Saturday’s game.

This weekend’s game will also feature a free watch party at Vol Village in Humanities Plaza. All fans and students are invited, and no game ticket is needed.  

Truly’s Tailgate: Located outside Gate 9, fans can stop by for food and drinks at Truly’s Tailgate. Fans may enter Truly’s prior to gates opening without having a ticket scanned. When gates open, fans will need to scan their ticket to enter Truly’s.

New to Truly’s this season is the addition of the Vintage Volunteer Shop, where fans can purchase classic gameday merchandise with all their favorite marks and logos.

Truly’s will open at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday and remain open for the majority of the game, giving fans in the south concourse a variety of food, drinks, television entertainment and additional restroom options. Truly’s will close at the end of the third quarter.

For complete gameday information, visit UTsports.com/gameday.

Orange Out: Fans are encouraged to wear their finest Tennessee orange attire for Saturday’s showdown against the Crimson Tide.

NEED TO KNOW

Sampson on Record Pace
Dylan Sampson continues to be Tennessee’s most dangerous weapon offensively and has been the most productive running back in the SEC this season. The junior posted his fifth 100-plus yard rushing effort of the year and scored all three touchdowns in last Saturday night’s overtime win over the Gators. Entering Saturday’s contest, Sampson leads all power conference players and ranks second nationally in rushing touchdowns with 15. Sampson also leads the SEC and is ninth in the FBS in rushing yards per game (116.5) and ranks fourth in the conference in yards per carry (5.92). His five 100-yard rushing games are tops in the SEC while his 90 total points accounted for rank second nationally.

Sampson is the third Vols’ running back in the last three seasons to score double-digit rushing touchdowns in a single campaign – joining Jabari Small and Jaylen Wright who had 13 and 10 in 2022, respectively. He needs just three more to tie Gene McEver’s program record of 18, which was set back in 1929.

The Neyland Effect

Neyland Stadium is once again one of the nation’s most electric environments and toughest places to play for visiting teams. Over the past two seasons, the Vols are 16-1 inside of its confines, outscoring opponents 803-297. In the Josh Heupel era (since 2021), UT is 21-4 at home and has outscored its opponents 2,024-458 with 17 of those wins coming by double digits. Tennessee’s 16 home wins since the start of the 2022 season are tied for sixth in the nation.

Neyland Stadium will be sold out for 17^th consecutive game on Saturday. UT has ranked in the top five nationally in attendance in each of the last two seasons, ranking No. 3 in total attendance (713,405) and No. 4 in average attendance (101,915) while leading the SEC in attendance in 2023.

Red Zone Defense is Dominant

The Vols have been dominant on the defensive side of the ball all year long, having yet to allow more than 19 points in a game this season. Their dominance has been especially noticeable in the red zone, where they have allowed opponents to score just six touchdowns in 19 total trips this season and have kept their opposition from scoring any points 36.8 percent of the time, which ranks sixth nationally.

In last Saturday’s victory over Florida, UT kept the Gators off the scoreboard in three of their six red zone trips, including a forced fumble on the 1-yard line in the second quarter to stymie one drive.

Winning the Close Ones

Tennessee has proven to be among the nation’s best in tight games. The Vols are 6-1 in one-touchdown games (decided by 8 points or less) since the start of the 2022 season and added to that total with a 23-17 overtime victory over Florida last week. UT’s only loss during that span was at Arkansas on Oct. 5.

Of those six wins, three have come against ranked teams – No, 17 Pitt (2022), No. 20 Florida (2022) and No. 3/1 Alabama (2022). The other three were against Kentucky (2023), Texas A&M (2023) and Florida (2024). The Vols’ 85.71 win percentage in one-score games since the start of the 2022 season is the best in the SEC (min. three one-score games played).

SERIES HISTORY

Alabama leads series, 60-39-7
Saturday will mark the 107^th meeting all-time between Tennessee and Alabama as the two teams have played every season since 1928 with the exception of 1943 due to World War II.

The Vols will look to recreate the magic from the last meeting between the two programs inside of Neyland Stadium, a 52-49 Tennessee victory that snapped a 15-game losing streak to the Tide and was the Vols’ first victory in the series since Oct. 21, 2006. It was the most points scored by UT in the series and the most points Alabama had allowed in any game since a 54-4 defeat to Sewanee in 1907.

ABOUT ALABAMA

After 17 seasons of being led by head coach Nick Saban, the Crimson Tide are in their first year of the post-Saban era as former Washington head man Kalen DeBoer has taken over the reigns of the program. Alabama enters Saturday’s game with the No. 3-ranked scoring offense in the SEC at 41.7 points per game but ranks 11^th in the league in scoring defense (20.8 points per game) and 13^th in total defense (342.5 yards per game).

Talented dual-threat quarterback Jalen Milroe leads the Tide’s explosive offense, having accounted for 23 total touchdowns (12 passing, 11 rushing) already this season. The running back duo of Jam Miller and Justice Haynes have combined for 541 rushing yards and six touchdowns on the ground, as well. Freshman standout Ryan Williams ranks second in the SEC in receiving yards with 576 and is also tied for the league lead in touchdown catches with six.

Defensively, junior linebackers Deontae Lawson and Jihaad Campbell are the team’s two top tacklers with 40 and 39, respectively. Both are also among four players tied for the team lead in tackles for loss with four. Que Robinson leads the Tide with four sacks while Keon Sabb and Domani Jackson both have a pair of interceptions to lead the secondary.