Tennessee athletic director Danny White has a mighty challenge on his hands. He needs to find a worthy football program for the Vols to face off against in place of the Nebraska Cornhuskers. That won’t be easy.
“At this point in time, there isn’t a single Power Four option for a home-and-home (series) in the country,” White said during a recent appearance on WNML. “There’s not one. Unless something changes, that’s a challenge.
“We’re working through that and seeing if there’s flexibility with some folks. We have a lot of people working on it.”
It will certainly take a team effort. White is in a tough spot after Nebraska decided to cancel its series with the Vols. The two teams were set to square off in Lincoln, Neb., in 2026 and in Neyland Stadium in 2027.
UT suddenly finds itself not only short of a quality opponent but also short of a requirement by the SEC, which mandates a team play a Power Four opponent each season. The Power Four conferences consist of the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC.
“Our No. 1 priority is to try to fulfill the Power Four requirement, not only because it is our requirement with the conference, but I know our team and program, it’s important to have as (high of a) level of competition as we can,” White said. “That’s why we were so disappointed to lose this series this late in the game.
“It’s really hard to find a home-and-home (series) with this short of notice. People don’t have holes. This is why we schedule so far in advance so we don’t have gaps in the schedule.”
White said Tennessee should announce a new opponent soon. However, there’s no telling just what team or in what city that game might be played. White said the Vols are considering a neutral site game with a Power Four opponent or a home-and-home series with a non-Power Four opponent. The latter would require an exemption from the SEC.
