Tennessee football: A look at Vols' future non-conference games

The SEC football landscape will look drastically different a year from now.

With the arrival of Texas and Oklahoma in 2024, the league will expand to 16 teams, scrap divisions and feature an eight-game conference schedule that will take away some traditional, annual rivalries for some teams.

The SEC made the decision to move to eight games on Thursday at the league's spring meetings in Destin, Florida, opting for that format over nine games, though it could just be a temporary fix.

For now, Tennessee will face one permanent rival next season. With the SEC focused on preserving games like the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party between Florida and Georgia in Jacksonville, the Alabama vs. Auburn Iron Bowl clash and the Red River rivalry that Texas and Oklahoma will bring, it is likely that the Vols will keep either Vanderbilt or Kentucky on its schedule while getting to rotate games against other teams.

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said Thursday that the 2024 conference schedule will be revealed in a primetime reveal show on SEC Network on June 14.

One requirement that comes with the new scheduling format is that every team has to schedule at least one game against a ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, PAC 12 or major independent team.

A number of SEC teams already have contracts between Power Five programs in place, Tennessee included.

The Vols will open the 2023 season against Virginia at Nissan Stadium in Nashville on Sept. 2 and have neutral games against two more ACC schools coming up as well as home-and-homes with Big Ten and PAC 12 teams through 2030.

Tennessee is set to play NC State in Week 2 of the 2024 season in the Duke's Mayo Classic at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Vols last played the Wolfpack in the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta in 2012.

The rest of Tennessee's 2024 non-conference slate includes Chattanooga, Kent State and UTEP.

In 2021, Tennessee and Syracuse announced a game against each other to open the 2025 season at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, marking the first meeting between the two programs since playing a home-and-home in 1998 and 2001. The Vols also have a out-of-conference game scheduled against UAB.

Tennessee's three non-conference games for the 2026 season feature Furman, Western Michigan and an intriguing game against Nebraska at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska. It will be the first of two, with the Huskers making the trip to Knoxville in 2027.

Tennessee will play West Virginia in Charlotte in 2028, making it the second time in a decade that the Vols and Mountaineers have played at Bank of America Stadium, the last meeting coming in 2018.

Tennessee and Washington announced a series in 2022 that brings the Huskies to Neyland Stadium in 2029 and the Vols to Seattle in 2030.

Given the fluctuation of college football and conference expansion right now, there is no guarantee that Tennessee plays all of these games.

Sankey reaffirmed his commitment to keeping the SEC at 16 teams earlier this week, but with USC and UCLA slated to join the Big Ten in the coming years and the ACC's top teams seemingly trying to work their way out of a long-term contract, the league's hand may be forced to expand or adjust its scheduling again in the near future.

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