Tennessee is looking for a new dance partner on the gridiron for the 2026 and 2027 seasons.
According to a report from ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Friday, the home-and-home series between Tennessee and Nebraska for the 2026 and 2027 seasons is now off the table.
“Sources: Tennessee and Nebraska are canceling their upcoming football series, which was scheduled for 2026 in Lincoln and 2027 in Knoxville,” Thamel’s post on X reads. “A driver of the move was Nebraska wanting eight home games in 2027 when they expected reduced stadium capacity because of renovations.”
Tennessee Athletic Director Danny White voiced his disagreement with the wording of Thamel’s report and set the record straight on social media, calling out Nebraska for being the ones to back out late in the process.
“Correction: Tennessee is not canceling this series. Nebraska did,” White replied to Thamel’s post just eight minutes after it was published. “We are very disappointed that they didn’t want to play these games, especially this close to 2026.”
Correction: Tennessee is not canceling this series. Nebraska did. We are very disappointed that they didn’t want to play these games, especially this close to 2026. https://t.co/uSz7kAXk94
— Danny White (@AD_DannyWhite) February 21, 2025
More from RTI: Nebraska Football Opts Out Of Upcoming Home-and-Home With Tennessee
While a quick glimpse of Thamel’s post may indicate that Tennessee and Nebraska are canceling the series, White made it clear with his correction that Nebraska was the one to pull the rug out with only a year and a half until the start of the 2026 football season.
Knoxville News Sentinel’s Adam Sparks posted a quote from White on X after the initial news release.
“I think it’s kind of unprecedented to pull out of home-and-home (series) this late with this little notice, so I’m annoyed by it,” White said via Sparks’ reporting.
“I think it’s kind of unprecedented to pull out of home-and-home (series) this late with this little notice, so I’m annoyed by it.” — UT AD Danny White https://t.co/Jnavci2bdr
— Adam Sparks (@AdamSparks) February 21, 2025
Considering that there are only 19 months between now and the start of the 2026 season, White now has the difficult task of filling the now-created opening. The move from Nebraska also robs college football fans of an exciting non-conference series between two well-known programs.
The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy also had a breaking beat on the story and did state that Nebraska was the side canceling the series. McMurphy is also reporting on Friday that Nebraska is adding a home game against Bowling Green in 2026 and home games against Miami (OH) and Northern Iowa in 2027 in the wake of the Tennessee cancelation.
While the Nebraska series is off the table, Tennessee does have more non-conference showdowns on the horizon. The Vols will take on Syracuse in a neutral site game from Atlanta to kick off the 2025 season, followed by a neutral site game against West Virginia in Charlotte, NC, in 2028. Tennessee also has a home-and-home series with Washington in 2029 and 2030.
McMurphy’s report states that the series was originally scheduled for 2016 and 2017 but was pushed back a decade to 2026 and 2027.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for coverage of Tennessee’s new scheduling movement as more information comes out.
Nebraska cancels home/home series w/Tennessee in 2026 & 2027. Cornhuskers must pay $500,000 to cancel series, which was agreed on in 2006 & scheduled for 2016-17. However, series was moved back to 2026-27
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) February 21, 2025
