Josh Heupel welcomed Texas into the SEC — in a way — on Thursday at SEC Media Days on Nashville.

When asked about the Longhorns joining the SEC and who would get to claim the “UT” abbreviation, Heupel was clear.

“There’s only one real UT and only one real shade of orange,” Heupel said.

Texas and its darker shade of orange will not be arriving in Knoxville in the next couple of years. The Vols are set to face Oklahoma in 2024, but a meeting with Texas could come as early as 2025.

Tennessee and Texas have met on the gridiron 3 times previously, but not since 1969. Additionally, the programs have never met on each other’s campuses. All 3 games took place in Dallas, Texas. Texas is 2-1 in those contests, with the Vols’ lone win coming back in 1951.

However, Heupel does have a long history with Texas. He played against the Longhorns as Oklahoma’s quarterback and coached against them as an assistant on Bob Stoops’ staff from 2006-2014.

Tennessee will open its season against Virginia on Sept. 2.