A look ahead at Tennessee's 2024 football schedule
The SEC released its revamped 2024 football schedule last month.
The league, which will move to no divisions upon the arrival of Oklahoma and Texas, will feature 16 teams and eight conference games with each team playing one permanent opponent.
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For Tennessee, the schedule has a number of familiar foes while adding one new SEC member and some teams the Vols haven't faced in awhile. Dates and kickoff times will be announced at a later date.
Here is a closer look at the slate.
Non-conference play includes ACC neutral site clash
Tennessee opens the season against Chattanooga at Neyland Stadium on Aug. 31 in the Vols' lone match up with an FCS team.
Games against Kent State and UTEP round out the non-conference schedule on Sept. 14 and Nov. 23, respectively.
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For the sixth time in the last nine seasons, Tennessee will play an ACC team for its marquee non-conference game.
The Vols play NC State at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte in Week 2 on Sept. 7. The two programs last played to open the 2012 stadium in the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Game at the Georgia Dome.
The Wolfpack last played a regular season game against an SEC opponent in 2021, losing 24-10 at Mississippi State and have played Power Five non-conference games against West Virginia and South Carolina under head coach Dave Doeren, compiling a 0-3 record.
Tennessee travels to SEC newcomer
There is still a year before Oklahoma and Texas join the SEC but there is already plenty of intrigue ahead of future match ups involving Tennessee and a the two schools.
Between the claim to the "real UT" and Josh Heupel's association with the Sooners where he won a national championship as a quarterback in 2000, there is already anticipation.
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Tennessee will have to wait for its on-field clash with the Longhorns, but will go to Norman to play Oklahoma at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium next season.
The Vols and Sooners played twice in a home-and-home series that resulted in two Tennessee losses—once on the road in 2014 and again in overtime at Neyland Stadium in 2015.
Tennessee was supposed to make a return trip to Norman in 2020 but the game was postponed and eventually scrapped due to COVID. Now the two teams will meet as conference foes.
"The opportunity to go back to Oklahoma, yeah, I wish they were coming to Knoxville first," Heupel said at SEC Media Days. "I say that jokingly, but looking forward to that opportunity. That's a long ways down the road, man. Focused on '23, but that will be a unique day in my career, obviously to go back there."
Vols keep rivals on schedule
The concern ahead of the schedule release was the loss of traditional rivalries, but Tennessee didn't lose any.
The Vols' schedule features five of its annual rivals, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and Vanderbilt.
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Tennessee made some headway against both Alabama and Florida last season, snapping losing streaks with dramatic victories on its way to an 11-win season. The Vols will play host to both in Knoxville.
Tennessee hasn't beaten Georgia since 2016 and the Bulldogs have won two national championships since that meeting and though the Vols have made strides in competing on a big stage, the Bulldogs look like they're not going anywhere.
The 2022 meeting at Sanford Stadium featured the No. 1 team in the College Football Playoff Top 25 and the No. 1 team in the AP with Georgia winning 27-13 but Tennessee has a chance to flip the script at Neyland Stadium in 2023.
Trip to Fayetteville part of road slate
The new schedule allows for Tennessee to face teams it doesn't often get to play against.
Part of the Vols' road slate includes a game against Arkansas at Reynolds-Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville.
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Tennessee has only played Arkansas twice since the last round of conference realignment in 2012. The Vols lost both in 2015 and 2020.
Tennessee hasn't beaten Arkansas on the road since 2001.
Sam Pittman has undoubtedly made the Razorbacks more competitive and given the Vols' struggles in Fayetteville, it sets up to one of the more anticipated games on the schedule.
Mississippi State comes back to Knoxville
Tennessee last played Mississippi State in 2019 and for the second-straight time, the Vols get the Bulldogs at home.
Mississippi State hasn't won at Neyland Stadium since 1986.
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The Bulldogs are in a state of transition. Former head coach Mike Leach passed away in December 2022 and defensive coordinator Zach Arnett took over the program and is preparing to enter his first season.
Mississippi State won nine games last season and returns a number starters, including quarterback Will Rogers. The offense will look different, though as the team moves away from Leach's Air Raid.
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