Earlier this week, Charlie Burris, my co-host on the Big Orange Podcast (streamed live on Monday nights at 7:00 PM ET) sent a tweet that caused a stir on social media between fans of the Tennessee Titans and the Tennessee Vols. 

Burris suggested, after seeing a photo of a sold out Nissan Stadium full of orange-clad Vols fans (for UT's season-opener against Virginia), that the Titans should do a better job of building a connection with Tennessee fans. 

The tweet has been viewed nearly a million times. 

If the Titans would take even the smallest effort to pander to Tennessee fans they could get more of this. Instead they prefer to spit in our faces. https://t.co/73sI5R0KDn

— Charlie Burris (@Charlie_Burris) September 2, 2023

The strongly-worded tweet (sorry Charlie, I'm not sure about the spit in the face part) set off a firestorm on social media, leading some Titans fans and media members to flood Burris' mentions with a litany of tweets. Most of the tweets appeared to have very little desire to engage in an actual discussion. Instead, it was mostly personal attacks directed at Burris and/or Vols fans. 

I saw the tweet and since I'm not a Titans fan, I really didn't give it much thought at first. Quite honestly, the relationship between the Titans and the Vols doesn't matter to me on a personal level. 

But the discussion is interesting. From a business standpoint, and the Titans are ultimately a business that's trying to generate revenue, there are a large amount of Vols fans in the state that either don't root for an NFL team or they don't root for the Titans because they feel no connection to a team that showed up in Nashville in the late 90s. 

It would make financial sense to reach out to those fans to try to get them on board with supporting the Titans. 

Now, that doesn't mean that the Titans need to do anything over the top. They don't need to start playing Rocky Top during games. And they don't need to start putting orange Power T logos around the stadium. I'm not sure anything differently needs to be done on game day (except for one idea that I'll get to in a moment). 

(And since I saw this mentioned a ton, no I don't think the Titans need to focus on drafting former Tennessee players. That should never be a factor when identifying talent for any NFL team…unless it's something scheme specific, etc.)

The Titans could build a connection with Vols fans, without alienating fans of other programs who also cheer for the Titans (Vanderbilt, Alabama, Ole Miss, etc), with special alumni/fan events that feature appearances from members of the Titans brass (or something along those lines). I'm not sure what that would look like, but it's a small gesture that could rally Vols fans/alumni around the Titans. 

Another way that the Titans could appeal to Vols fans, and this would involve game day, would be to honor Tennessee's 1998 national championship team in Nissan Stadium this season. It's been 25 years since the Vols beat Florida State in the Fiesta Bowl to claim Tennessee's last national championship. And it would be a nice gesture to honor one of the few national champions that the state of Tennessee has seen over the last several decades. 

The Titans' game against the Indianapolis Colts on December 3 would be the perfect time to honor the 98 Vols team (and it doesn't need to be anything crazy, maybe a quick pre-game on-field salute or at halftime…or maybe even a ceremonial coin toss featuring some key players from the 98 team). 

December 3 works because it's the Baltimore Ravens' bye week, which would allow Tee Martin, the quarterback of the 98 Vols who is currently the Ravens' quarterbacks coach, to attend the event with his family. 

There are a few way subtle ways that the Titans could further build the relationship with the Vols fan base without being over the top. And it's not that I think the Titans should be required to reach out to Vols fans, it just makes good business sense to make an effort. There's money to be spent by football fans who are already incredibly passionate. Why not reach out to those fans?

Featured image via Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK