Louisville reportedly tried to set up a football home-and-home series with Tennessee.
After Nebraska backed out of a series with the Vols that was slated for 2026 in Lincoln and 2027 in Knoxville and had been scheduled for more than a decade earlier this year, the Cardinals were interested in filling the void on Tennessee's schedule, according to Action Network's Brett McMurphy.
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The Vols instead announced a home-and-home series against Georgia Tech last month, reviving the rivalry between the two programs in Atlanta in 2026 and again at Neyland Stadium in 2027.
"After Nebraska canceled the series, our main focus was to secure another home-and-home matchup with an opponent from a Power Four conference, which seemed improbable at the time," Tennessee athletic director Danny White said in a statement on April 9. "I sincerely appreciate Athletic Director J Batt's creativity in modifying Georgia Tech's schedule to make this series possible. We look forward to seeing plenty of orange in Atlanta in 2026!"
According to McMurphy, Louisville also tried to add Ole Miss to its future non-conference schedule but were turned down by the Rebels, who will play Washington State after Wake Forest bought out its contract last year.
The Cardinals have scheduled home-and-home games against Georgia, Texas A&M and Notre Dame in the coming years.
Tennessee has played Louisville five times previously, winning all five match ups dating back to 1914.
The two teams last played in a home-and-home series in 1991 and 1993 with the Vols beating the Cardinals, 28-11 at the since-demolished Cardinal Stadium and 45-10 at Neyland Stadium two years later.
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Tennessee has played an ACC team as part of its non-conference schedule for four-straight seasons. The Vols split a home-and-home series with Pittsburgh in 2021 and 2022 and beat Virginia in Nashville in its 2023 opener.
Tennessee routed NC State, 51-10 in the Duke's Mayo Classic at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte last season. The Vols are set to opener their 2025 campaign against Syracuse in the Aflac Kickoff Classic at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Aug. 30 (Noon ET, ABC).
Upcoming Tennessee schedules currently feature non-conference games against West Virginia in Charlotte in 2028 and a home-and-home series with Washington in 2029 (Knoxville) and 2030 (Seattle).
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