‘I hated Tennessee for a while’ – Vols transfer addition left no doubt on how he felt about UT football before landing on Rocky Top

Josh Heupel and the Tennessee Vols made several big-time transfer additions this offseason. One of those transfer additions revealed this week that he was absolutely not a fan of the Vols before transferring to Tennessee.

Zach Ragan Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

One of the Tennessee Vols’ big offseason transfer additions revealed this week that he was not a fan of UT football growing up.

Senior defensive back Qua Moss met with reporters on Tuesday for the first time since transferring to Tennessee.

Moss, who previously played at Dodge City Community College, West Georgia, and Kansas State, told reporters that he grew up rooting for Alabama (he also pointed out that he “hated” Georgia growing up).

“I hated Georgia,” said Moss. “I was an Alabama fan. I wanted to go there at first. I’m going to be real, I hated Tennessee for a while. When they beat Alabama, oh my gosh. But it grew on me, though. So I was an Alabama fan growing up.”

Moss added that most of his family, with the exception of his brother (who rooted for Georgia), were also Alabama fans. But they’ll be cheering for the Volunteers this fall according to Moss.

“Oh for sure,” said Moss when asked if his family will be rooting for Tennessee this season. “They know to. Yeah, they are.”

Qua Moss isn’t the only ex-Alabama fan on Tennessee’s roster

Moss isn’t the only former Alabama fan on Tennessee’s roster.

Vols EDGE transfer addition Jordan Norman, who previously played at Tulane, told reporters earlier this spring that he “went against” his family by transferring to Tennessee.

“Honestly, I love the history of Tennessee,” said Norman of his transfer decision. “I’m from Bama, so as y’all may know, I’m going against my family [by] coming here. But the history, the fans, and how much y’all support y’all’s players here, I really like that.”

“My whole family is Alabama fans….they were mad,” added Norman. “But at the end of the day, it’s my decision, you know, what I want to do — what I feel like is best for me. So I chose Tennessee.”

Unlike Moss, Norman said his family won’t be cheering for Tennessee when Alabama visits Knoxville in October (but they’ll be rooting for Norman as an individual).

“That’s gonna be a crazy week,” said Norman. “They said the only time they’ll be rooting for me is when I make a play. Any other time, it’s go Bama. But I can understand that.”

SEC football has been splitting families for decades.