Texas Visits Tennessee Saturday in First Meeting Since 1969

The Longhorns and Volunteers face off at Neyland Stadium in their first matchup as SEC opponents, with Arch Manning set to play where his uncle Peyton starred.

Texas and Tennessee will play Saturday at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, their first meeting since 1969 and their first as Southeastern Conference opponents. Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning is set to start in the venue where his uncle Peyton Manning starred for the Volunteers, also wearing No. 16.

Texas enters the week coming off a win over UTSA in which head coach Steve Sarkisian grew testy when asked about defensive lineman Colin Simmons, who injured his foot. Sarkisian pointed reporters to the SEC's injury report rather than offering details.

Manning described his own performance against UTSA as having plenty to clean up and said he had received little advice from Peyton about playing at Neyland Stadium. The quarterback also addressed off-field matters this week, including an apology to ESPN's Holly Rowe over comments about a fake AI video.

Beyond the standings, players have embraced a lighthearted debate over which school is the real UT. Texas defensive tackle Hero Kanu called it a fun competition, adding that the Longhorns will show up either way. All-American left tackle Trevor Goosby said he prefers burnt orange to Tennessee's shade of orange.

The SEC identifies Tennessee as UT in its statistics, listing Texas as TEX since the Longhorns joined the league in July 2024. Tennessee was founded roughly 90 years before Texas, originally as Blount College.