Tennessee football is renewing its Checker Neyland tradition this season when it hosts Florida at Neyland Stadium on Oct. 12, the Vols announced on Tuesday.
It marks the fourth straight season that Tennessee has done a Checker Neyland game with the Vols checkering the stadium every season under head coach Josh Heupel. Tennessee’s matchup against Florida will be the eighth ever Checker Neyland game with previous games coming from 2014-2017 under former head coach Butch Jones.
Tennessee is 3-4 all-time in Checker Neyland games but has won two of the three games during Heupel’s tenure as head coach including its win over Texas A&M last season. The Vols have Checkered Neyland more times against Florida than any other team and currently hold a 2-1 record in those matchups. Tennessee lost the very first Checker Neyland game in 2014 against Florida before defeating the Gators in both 2016 and 2022.
The rivalry matchup between Tennessee and Florida is later than it normally is during the first season of the 16-team SEC without divisions. It’s a critical game for Tennessee football’s College Football Playoff hopes as they need to take care of business against a Florida team with relatively low expectations.
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Josh Heupel is 1-2 against Florida during his tenure as Tennessee’s head coach and 1-1 against Billy Napier coached Florida teams. Heupel’s Vols lost in Gainesville in both 2021 and 2023 but did earn a 38-33 victory over Florida at Neyland Stadium during the 2022 season.
According to BetMGM, Tennessee is currently 10-point favorites in the mid October matchup against Florida in Knoxville.
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Tennessee’s matchup against Florida comes one week after they face Arkansas in Fayetteville before hosting rival Alabama the next week in Knoxville.
The Vols open up their 2024 season in less than two weeks when they host UT-Chattanooga at Neyland Stadium on Aug. 31. Kickoff is at 12:45 p.m. ET with the SEC Network broadcasting the game.
