A massive opportunity awaits No. 14/14 Tennessee against No. 6/7 Alabama as the two longtime rivals prepare to face off in one of college football's most exciting rivalry games on The Third Saturday In October.

Saturday's meeting between the Volunteers and Crimson Tide will mark the 109th meeting on the gridiron between the two storied SEC programs and will be played in front of another sellout crowd of 101,915 at Neyland Stadium, the 32nd in a row at the historic venue.

GAMEDAY TIMELINE

SEC Nation Live – 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. (Ayres Hall)Customer Service at Gate 21 Opens – 11:30 a.m.Truly's Tailgate & Stadium Extended Perimeter Opens – 11:30 a.m.Vol Village Opens – 12 p.m.Gates Open – 12:30 p.m.Vol Walk – 1:20 p.m.Pride of the Southland Band March – 1:50 p.m. Pride of the Southland Band Pregame Performance Begins – 3:31 p.m.National Anthem/Flyover – 3:34 p.m.*Two FA-18 Super Hornets from the Navy's VFA-213 Fighting Blacklions based at Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia.Vols Run Through the T – 3:42 p.m.Kickoff – 3:45 p.m.

NEW SOUND SYSTEM HIGHLIGHTS NEYLAND STADIUM FAN ENHANCEMENTS FOR 2026

A new, state-of-the-art sound system highlights the gameday enhancements that fans will experience this fall as they enjoy Tennessee football in Neyland Stadium. Also new this season is an extended Southeast Concourse 3, Champions Corner located outside of Gate 9, yellow line down and distance technology on the video boards as well as multiple concessions enhancements and new locations.

GAMEDAY EVENTS & ACTIVITIES

SEC Nation: The SEC Network's weekly pregame show will originate from the lawn of Ayres Hall for Saturday's top 15 matchup between the Vols and Crimson Tide. The show airs from 9 a.m. to noon on the SEC Network.Matt Barrie, Chase Daniel, Paul Finebaum, Roman Harper, Tim Tebow and Marion Crowder headline SEC Nation. This week's edition will also feature Marty Smith and Ryan McGee.Ayers Hall will also be home to The Paul Finebaum Show Presented by Johnsonville, with #FinebaumFriday live from 3-7 p.m. ESPN SportsCenter originates from the site from 5-5:30 p.m. Friday.Vol Village Presented by Toyota: Vol Village presented by Toyota, serves as the ideal spot to view the Vol Walk and the Pride of Southland Band march. Admission is free to all fans with or without a game ticket. Located across from Circle Park, Vol Village features live music, food trucks and beverage stations, interactive displays and fun activities for all ages.Vol Village will highlight a new artist or band each home game with a pregame concert series, providing Vol fans with the ultimate pregame atmosphere. Vol Village opens at noon ET for Saturday's game.Truly's Tailgate: Located outside the newly renovated Gate 9, fans are encouraged to visit the new and improved Truly's area for food, drinks and more! Truly's Tailgate has expanded with Texas Roadhouse and a number of other new food and beverage options for fans to enjoy before and during the game.For any game starting later than noon ET, Truly's will open four hours prior to kickoff. For Saturday's game, the tailgate will open at 11:30 a.m. Truly's will stay open throughout the game, giving fans in the south concourse a variety of food, drinks and additional restroom options. Truly's will close at the end of the third quarter.

BROADCAST INFO

TV/Streaming InfoSean McDonough (PxP), Greg McElroy (analyst) and Katie George (sideline reporter) will have the call for Saturday's game on ABC.Vol Network Radio InfoUT fans can listen to Tennessee's official radio broadcast via the Vol Network (Local: WIVK-FM 107.7/WNML-FM 99.1) on 64 stations across the state of Tennessee and the southeast, SiriusXM (Ch. 178 or 229) and the SiriusXM app (Ch. 953).

NEED TO KNOW

The Third Saturday in Full ColorAs announced in August, both teams will don their home jerseys for Saturday's contest as part of a two-year agreement between both administrations and coaching staffs, bringing back an old tradition in the rivalry.This will be the first time since Oct. 17, 1970, in Neyland Stadium during former head coach Bill Battle's first season that the teams will wear orange and crimson jerseys, respectively. The Vols won that contest 24-0, behind a school-record eight interceptions, including three from Tim Priest.The 2027 meeting in Tuscaloosa will see UT wear orange jersey tops for the first time ever in Bryant-Denny Stadium.Sack AttackTennessee enters Saturday's game with an FBS-best 25 sacks on the year while also leading the SEC and ranking fourth in the nation with 48 tackles for loss. Defensive tackle Xavier Gilliam leads the charge with five sacks and 10 TFLs, marks that rank fourth and third in the conference. Tyree Weathersby isn't far behind with 4.5 sacks and is one of seven Vols with multiple sacks this season. Leaning on the Ground GameAs has become a staple under head coach Josh Heupel, the Vols feature one of the country's best rushing attacks, entering this Saturday's contest ranked 15th nationally and second in the SEC with an average of 228.3 rushing yards per game.Senior running back DeSean Bishop leads the way for the Big Orange, ranking second in the SEC with 678 rushing yards (113.0 ypg) and eight touchdowns this year. Bishop has found the end zone in nine of his last 10 games dating back to last season.Fours UpTennessee shown an ability to get stronger as the game goes on and has been especially effective in the fourth quarter this season. For the year, the Vols have outscored their opponents 56-36 in the final quarter and have yet to be outscored in the fourth quarter in a game this season (tied twice).Last week, UT outscored Arkansas, 14-3, after entering final quarter trailing 14-10 in Fayetteville. The Big Orange also outgained the Razorbacks, 191-46, in the final stanza.

SERIES HISTORY

Alabama leads series, 61-40-7Tennessee will be looking to post its third consecutive victory at home over the Crimson Tide. The Vols won an instant classic to break a long losing streak in 2022, winning a 52-49 thriller on a 40-yard field goal by Chase McGrath as time expired. UT made it two wins in a row at home in 2024 with a hard-fought 24-17 victory that featured a game-winning 16-yard touchdown catch by Chris Brazzell II in the fourth quarter.Should the Vols pull out another victory on Saturday, it would mark the first time they have won three straight against the Tide at home since doing so during a stretch from 1996 through 2000.

ABOUT ALABAMA

Head coach Kalen DeBoer is in his third season leading the Crimson Tide, having posted a 25-9 record during that span with a College Football Playoff appearance last season. Alabama enters Saturday's contest ranked No. 6 in the AP Poll after a 5-1 start, including a 3-1 record in conference play following a narrow 20-17 defeat to No. 2 Georgia last weekend.Sophomore quarterback Keelon Russell is having a breakout year and is the engine that drives the Crimson Tide offense, ranking 10th in the FBS and third in the SEC by accounting for 304.0 yards of total offense per game. Russell leads the league in passing yards with 1,599 to go along with 12 touchdown passes and just two interceptions. He's also a major threat on the ground with 225 rushing yards and four scores.Alabama will be without its leading receiver in Ryan Coleman-Williams, who was injured in last Saturday's loss to Georgia. The duo of Lotzeir Brooks (23 rec., 389 yds, 1 TD) and Rico Scott (18 rec., 224 yds, 3 TD) will be Russell's top targets through the air. UA boasts three productive running backs, as well, with Trae'shawn Brown (51 att., 301 yds, 5 TD), Daniel Hill (55 att., 262 yds, 4 TD) and EJ Crowell (31 att., 215 yds, 4 TD) having all played a part in the Tide's vastly improved rushing attack.The linebacker duo of Luke Metz and Caleb Woodson lead the team in tackles with 43 and 42, respectively. The Crimson Tide have also racked up 17.0 sacks and 34.0 TFLs on the year, led by defensive lineman Devan Thompkins, who has a team-leading 4.5 TFLs and three sacks. Alabama features one of the nation's best secondaries and leads the SEC with nine interceptions this season. Seven different players have intercepted a pass for the Tide, led by Bray Hubbard and Red Morgan, who are tied for the team lead with two apiece.

Source: Yahoo Sports