Tennessee football will play Alabama in a nationally televised game.

ABC will broadcast the "Third Saturday in October" rivalry game on Oct. 17 at 3:30 p.m. ET from Neyland Stadium.

A loss could send the Vols (5-1, 2-1) toward a solid-but-unspectacular season. A win could against the Tide (5-1, 3-1) would put them on the path to a College Football Playoff appearance. Tennessee defeated Arkansas 24-17 on Oct. 10, while Alabama fell to Georgia 20-17.

The teams have split the two games between Tennessee coach Josh Heupel and Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer, who have a relationship that spans more than 20 years.

Tennessee, Alabama have defended home turf in recent meetings

Alabama leads the all-time series 61-40-7, but it's evened out in recent years. The home team has won each of the past five meetings during the Heupel era.

This game will be at Neyland Stadium. The Vols won 52-49 over Alabama there in 2022. And they won again, 24-17, in 2024.

Alabama beat Tennessee 37-20 in Tuscaloosa in 2025.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee football vs Alabama designated for ABC kickoff, how to watch

Source: Yahoo Sports