KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee’s SEC opener is by any measure, the biggest test the Volunteers have faced this season.

“Check in, lock in, get ready for game time,” Heupel told fans Monday. “Wake up early. Be at your best at 12. Be a part of this football game for 60 minutes.”

A Battle-Tested Opponent

Josh Heupel didn’t undersell what’s coming. The HC is 2-3 in SEC openers at Tennessee, and has gone 3-18 all-time against No.1 ranked teams from any poll.

Today, he met with local media, referring to Texas as “a battle-tested, very veteran group,” pointing to experience at quarterback, along the offensive line, and on defense.

“It starts with the quarterback,” Heupel said of Arch Manning, “but they have experience up front on the offensive line and a ton of experience on the defensive side of the football. Extremely athletic team.”

When pressed more on the subject of Manning, Heupel didn’t hesitate. He praised the way the quarterback has taken hold of the offense, pointing specifically to Texas’ response in the Ohio State game as proof of what Texas is made of.

“Smart. He’s got really good command and control of what’s going on,” Heupel said. “His ability, and his team’s ability, to be resilient and to keep playing the next play, to be in a situation like that and fight back. It tells you about their competitive makeup.”

Heupel was similarly direct about the challenge Texas’ offensive and defensive lines present. He described the Longhorns’ front seven as long, physically strong and capable of “knocking you back” against poor pad level and hand technique, and credited Texas’ defense for limiting explosive plays through gap discipline and fitting all three levels of the defense together. In the secondary, he said, Texas mixes zone, match coverage principles and a variety of pressures behind a talented, athletic group.

Tennessee’s Own Group Under The Microscope

Josh Heupel was asked today to assess his offensive line’s play through three games, with the Volunteers sitting at roughly 900 rushing yards on the season. His answer leaned more toward what still needs cleaning up than the raw production.

“Stats are stats,” Heupel said. He pointed to fundamentals, identification and communication in protection as the bigger measuring stick heading into conference play. “It’s not going to be perfect up front. All in all, it’s been solid, but this will be our biggest test as far as the front seven we’ve seen.”

He singled out lineman Jessie Perry for praise, saying a run of consistent snaps at right tackle over the past two games, after playing multiple spots in the opener, has paid off.

“Jessie’s done a really good job at right tackle,” Heupel said. “He’s played both guard and tackle in his career, but he’s played really well here the last couple of weeks at that spot.” Heupel added that Tennessee will lean on its full rotation up front as SEC play begins. “You’re going to need them all. I know you guys are probably tired of me saying that, but that’s the truth.”

“We’ve got to be better on fundamentals and being solid,” he said, noting that open-field tackling in particular will be tested as Tennessee moves into SEC play. He said fall camp carried a similar, if slightly heavier, emphasis on fundamentals than in year’s past.

The line has struggled at times to establish push early in games, leading to sluggish first quarters and uneven performances. 

In the non-con section of the schedule, the offensive line accounted for a notable share of the offense’s pre-snap and holding penalties, stalling drives. The run blocking has flashed a high ceiling against different fronts. 

Jesse Perry echoed what Heupel said. I asked him what needed to change this week. He told me nothing really needs to change, it was all in the preparation this week. Perry was adamant that this group prepares to execute each week. 

Josh Heupel was asked directly about how much room remains, schematically, to expand the offense around Faizon Brandon three games into his freshman season.

“He’s got really good command. He’s been really decisive with the football,” Heupel said. “There are a couple of throws he’d like to have back, but just fundamentally being a little off on some plays down the field that we’ve got to go make. For a young quarterback, I like what he’s done. You get into conference play, you’re going to grow and evolve every week.”

Josh Heupel also addressed a moment from Tennessee’s most recent game that had been described as precautionary involving Faizon Brandon.

“We’ll make sure he’s fully ready to go on Saturday,” Heupel said, adding that this week’s practices would be used to manage and monitor the quarterback ahead of his first SEC start.

When asked what message he plans to send his young quarterback ahead of the biggest game of his young career, Heupel kept it simple.

“Prepare in a great way, invest, practice in a great way,” he said. “The preparation gives you a chance to play the way that you want to.”

Heupel praised running back Donovan Haslam’s physicality through the first three games, noting that Haslam battled through a camp injury before working his way into better shape.

“Physicality is one of his best traits,” Heupel said. “He’s starting to play himself into better shape, and he played well in the last one.”

Up front defensively, Heupel credited his defensive line for both run-game discipline and consistent pressure on the quarterback through three games, pointing to the group’s pressure packages and twist games as functioning at a high level collectively.

An Unproven Secondary About To Be Tested

With questions lingering about whether Tennessee’s defensive backs have faced high-level competition this season, Heupel was asked what gives him confidence that Ty Redmond and the rest of the secondary can hold up against Texas receivers Cam Coleman and Ryan Wingo.

“Those are two really talented players for Texas,” Heupel said. “Both of our guys have played in this league. They’ve played a good amount of football. They’ve seen good players. They haven’t been tested the way that they will be tested Saturday afternoon” 

Vols DB TJ Metcalf is no stranger to SEC play. He told me today what they need to change as a unit before facing the No.1 team in the country. He pointed to details as being a focus this week. This group has been playing great ball. The secondary is operating under a new philosophy overseen by defensive coordinator Jim Knowles and Cornerbacks Coach Derek Jones. The emphasis has explicitly shifted toward strict positioning, disciplined eye placement, and locking down downfield explosive chunk plays. Metcalf is familiar with Manning. He faced him as a student-athlete at Michigan. 

“It’s SEC time now. We’re ready for the matchup.”

Vols' DB TJ Metcalf gave me a rundown today on what they need to change heading into a massive test for the UT secondary vs. the No. 1-ranked team in the country. Metcalf: “It’s SEC time now. We’re ready for the matchup.” pic.twitter.com/3M0vhHsb26

— Ellie (@Ellie_Mai_) September 21, 2026

A Rivalry Renewed, And A Coach Who’s Been On Both Sidelines

As a former Oklahoma quarterback, HC Josh Heupel grew up in a heated rivalry with the Longhorns. However, he wasn’t interested in the nostalgia angle when asked about  facing Texas as a rivalry he once lived out as a quarterback at Oklahoma. To him, it carries no extra  emotional weight, insisting his focus stays squarely on the game in front of him this Saturday, nothing more sentimental than that.

Tennessee is also leaning on some tradition to set the tone. The Vols will roll out “Checker Neyland” for Saturday’s showdown, transforming the end zones, and this time significant sections of the lower bowl, into the program’s signature orange-and-white checkerboard pattern. It’s a callback to the stadium’s original 1960s look. The full effect turns Neyland into a sea of alternating color blocks, a visual gut-punch for opposing offenses trying to communicate at the line, and it’s typically reserved for the biggest games on the home schedule. A visiting top-tier SEC opponent making its first-ever appearance in Knoxville certainly qualifies.

Josh Heupel, for his part, brushed aside any suggestion that the moment needs extra juice. He pointed instead to Tennessee’s habit of delivering in high-profile daytime kickoffs, suggesting the crowd and the noon start would take care of themselves without him needing to manufacture urgency. Between the checkerboard transformation and a white-hot atmosphere expected at kickoff, the Vols are betting that homefield theater does plenty of the talking before the ball is even snapped.

For the first time in 58 years, Tennessee and Texas meet on the gridiron. The
Longhorns lead the all-time series, 2-1. All three previous meetings occurred in Cotton
Bowls. Saturday will be the first time the two teams meet during the regular season.

For the first time in 58 years, Tennessee and Texas meet on the gridiron. The
Longhorns lead the all-time series, 2-1. All three previous meetings occurred in Cotton
Bowls. Saturday will be the first time the two teams meet during the regular season.

This is the first meeting between the two programs since the 1968 season on Jan. 1,
1969, in the Cotton Bowl, a game won 36-13 by the Longhorns. Texas also won the
1953 Cotton Bowl, 16-0

Find Your Color: 

Tennessee’s return to the ABC noon window at Neyland carries some history with it. The Vols haven’t played this network in this slot at home since 1982, when they beat Florida. Now, with the spotlight back on Knoxville, Vol Nation is looking to show up in force and push the Volunteers to a win in front of the entire college football world. 

Week 4. A 30th consecutive sold out game in Neyland Stadium. Two undefeated SEC teams. This is the Vols’ first noon ABC kickoff inside Neyland Stadium since Sept. 19, 1992, when they beat Florida. Coach Heupel is 2-3 in #SEC season openers.

Play-by-Play: Chris Fowler
Analyst:… pic.twitter.com/hKGWPANBSh

— Ellie (@Ellie_Mai_) September 21, 2026