The Tennessee Volunteers will kick off the 2026 season with a familiar routine: training camp opens on August 5, and the first test arrives on September 5 when they host Furman at Neyland Stadium. The matchup marks the beginning of a schedule that blends home‑field familiarity with road challenges across the SEC and beyond.
A stacked schedule
Tennessee will host Kennesaw State, Texas, Auburn, Alabama, Kentucky and LSU, while traveling to Georgia Tech, Arkansas, South Carolina, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt. The slate includes a return to South Carolina, where the Vols have only played once under Heupel, and a first‑time meeting with Texas in Austin, where quarterback Arch Manning prepares for his fourth season as a redshirt junior.
Coaching connections
Several assistants who once wore orange have moved on to prominent roles elsewhere. Jerry Mack, now the head coach at Kennesaw State, previously guided Tennessee’s running backs, while Alex Golesh, the current Auburn head coach, was Heupel’s offensive coordinator before taking the same position at Tennessee. Lane Kiffin, who led LSU to a 31‑26 victory over the Vols in 2021, returns to Neyland with his own agenda, and Will Stein, the new offensive coordinator at Texas, brings a fresh perspective to the Longhorns’ attack.
Heupel’s own track record adds intrigue: a 5‑0 record against Kentucky, a 2‑0 mark at home against Alabama, and a 24‑3 second‑half collapse against Vanderbilt in 2025 that still fuels discussion. The coach enters his sixth season with a 45‑20 overall record and a College Football Playoff appearance on his résumé, setting high expectations for a team that finished the previous year outscored 24‑3 in the final stretch.
Beyond the X’s and O’s, the narrative centers on storylines that could shape the early season. Will the Vols capitalize on their home‑field advantage against Furman and Kennesaw State? How will new faces like Arch Manning impact the Longhorns’ offense when they visit Knoxville? And can Heupel’s staff translate past successes into a fresh start against traditional powerhouses like Texas A&M and Georgia Tech? The answers will begin to emerge as the team takes the field in early September.