The Tennessee Volunteers have lost their last 11 “Third Saturday in October” rivalry games to Alabama, which just so happens to coincide with win Nick Saban made his way to Tuscaloosa.

However, the Vols want to flip the script a bit, starting this season.

Leading the way will be OL Trey Smith, who said he actually grew up as an Alabama fan. As you can see in the video below, shared on YouTube by Patrick Brown, Smith said the Alabama game is his favorite rivalry at Tennessee:

“For me, this is probably my favorite Tennessee rivalry,” he said. “Growing up, I was a big Alabama fan. My room back home is crimson. I’ve watched them my whole life. I always told myself I’d be in this rivalry game, wearing either crimson or orange. I made my decision to wear orange. This rivalry means a lot to me. Just seeing how it has turned the past couple of years, we want to turn it around.”

Coming off a big upset win at Auburn last weekend, the Vols will at least enter Saturday afternoon’s game with a lot of confidence. We’ll see if that translates into success on the field.