Tennessee vs. Alabama

The Tennessee vs. Alabama rivalry is steeped in tradition. The regular matchup of these teams has been dubbed the “Third Saturday in October” going back to 1939 even when sometimes due to scheduling issues, the game isn’t perfectly slotted on this third October Saturday.

Moreover, the rivalry is known for victory cigars. The tradition of the winning team smoking victory cigars goes back to the 1950s when Alabama trainer Jim Goostree handed out cigars following victory over the Vols. Due to potential NCAA violations around benefits and tobacco, the teams did the cigar ceremony behind closed doors for many years, but in 2005, Alabama restarted the tradition in the public eye and even self-reported the NCAA violation as a result.

The Tennessee-Alabama series has over 100 meetings going back to 1901 when they first met. The rivalry is one of streaks where one team often dominates for years at a time. Alabama won every year between 1971-1981. Tennessee won 9 of 10 between 1995 and 2004. But, the longest streak is the current streak in which Alabama has beaten Tennessee every year starting in 2007 to the present. Can the Vols end this streak this year? We will see.

Last 5 Tennessee vs. Alabama Games

ALABAMA
52
TENNESSEE
24
Bryant-Denny Stadium - Oct. 23, 2021
TENNESSEE
17
ALABAMA
48
Neyland Stadium - Oct. 24, 2020
ALABAMA
35
TENNESSEE
13
Bryant-Denny Stadium - Oct. 19, 2019
TENNESSEE
21
ALABAMA
58
Neyland Stadium - Oct. 20, 2018
ALABAMA
45
TENNESSEE
7
Bryant-Denny Stadium - Nov. 4, 2017

Recent Articles

SEC Matchups

College football is built by rivalries. Whether it's the Egg Bowl rivalry between Mississippi State and Ole Miss going back to 1901 or a more recent matchup born in the era of modern college football, the beauty of rivalries is that the games matter. Whether the game pits two national title contenders against eachother or two winless squads, the rivalry game matters and the passion is real.

Matchup Pages

LSU vs. Alabama

LSU vs. Florida

Tennessee vs. Alabama

Tennessee vs. Georgia

Tennessee vs. LSU

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