Tennessee’s football program loves to use the acronym VFL, which stands for Vol For Life. The program was started under former coach Derek Dooley in 2010 and has since been carried over by Butch Jones. However, according to some former Volunteer players, despite the effort they put into the program in the past, they have some doubts about how seriously Tennessee takes the “for life” part of the pledge.

Among the issues some former players have noted recently include being charged for tickets to attend football games and the difficulty it can take to can access to the sideline.

According to former Tennessee defensive back Chris Treece, who posted this message on Facebook Sunday evening after speaking with Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin, Penn State treats its former players much better than Tennessee is currently doing. In the replies, former Tennessee defensive lineman Jeff Coleman notes that the school makes former players pay for tickets.

Coleman pointed out that lack of money from tickets should not be an issue given the school’s revenue, which led all SEC schools for the 2015-16 fiscal year and was behind only Texas nationally. Former Tennessee defensive lineman Constantin Ritzmann, a former team captain for the Volunteers, chimed in noting how difficult it is to get a field pass.

Former Tennessee running back Gerald Riggs Jr. chimed in with his thoughts after seeing the initial post by Treece.

If these reactions are indicative of how the majority of Tennessee alumni are treated, the new athletic department has an opportunity to change things moving forward. It will be interesting to see how well new athletic director, and Tennessee graduate, John Currie adjusts the school’s policies moving forward. We’ll soon find out just how much Currie values the “for life” segment of the VFL program.