Tennessee’s schedule is packed with familiar faces this season, and not just once or twice. Rick Barnes’ 12th team will see six former Vols during the regular season, including five matchups in SEC play, a striking twist for a roster that changed shape dramatically in the portal.
That turnover cuts both ways. Tennessee added nine transfers this offseason, but it also lost six players to the transfer portal, continuing a pattern that has become part of the program’s yearly rhythm.
With 33 regular-season games on the slate, 18% of Tennessee’s schedule comes against ex-Vols. In SEC play, that number jumps to 33%.
The first reunion arrives early. On Nov.
24, Tennessee meets Bishop Boswell and Maryland at the Players Era Tournament in Las Vegas. Boswell started at shooting guard for the Vols last season and averaged 6.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.
He also delivered in Tennessee’s NCAA Tournament wins over Virginia and Iowa State, piling up 8-plus assists in both games.
Jaylen Carey is next, and he shows up twice. Tennessee will play his Missouri team in mid-January in Knoxville before heading to Columbia in early February. Carey spent one season in Knoxville and averaged 7.4 points and six rebounds per game.
Later in January, the Vols head to College Station to face Texas A&M and Cade Phillips. Phillips missed nearly the entire 2025-26 season after shoulder surgery in December, but he was an important part of Tennessee’s Elite Eight run a year earlier, putting up 4.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 14.9 minutes per game.
The first week of February brings Freddie Dilione back to Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center with Georgia. Dilione arrived at Tennessee as a highly ranked recruit, barely played as a freshman, then moved on to Penn State and developed into a solid Big 10 player.
A week after that, Tennessee goes to Oklahoma and runs into B.J. Edwards.
The Knoxville Catholic product signed with Tennessee out of high school, transferred to SMU after a quiet freshman year, and then took off as a two-way guard. Last season for the Mustangs, he averaged 12.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.3 steals per game.
After court rulings gave him a fifth year of eligibility last week, he entered the portal and signed with Oklahoma.
The final reunion comes on the last Saturday in February, when Tennessee faces Amari Evans and Texas. Evans showed real upside in his freshman year in Knoxville, especially in SEC play, where he emerged as a strong two-way guard.
In Other News...
Furman Just Added An Unexpected Week 1 Wrinkle For Tennessee
Furman added a little intrigue to Tennessees Week 1 prep by naming Jake Garcia its starting quarterback for the opener. Garcia brings a rsum that stands out for a matchup in which the Volunteers are expected to control things, since he arrived as a highly rated high school recruit and has already moved through multiple programs while gaining experience at the Power Five level.
For Tennessee, the headline still points to a game it should be favored to win, but Garcia gives Furman a quarterback with enough background to make the first weekend a little less routine. Even in a matchup that looks straightforward on paper, an experienced passer can force a defense to stay sharp early and prevent any sense of warm-up mode from creeping in. [Read more 🡒]
Jaxson Mois Tennessee Return Suddenly Feels More Real Than Expected
Jaxson Mois path back to Tennessee has gone from theoretical to at least plausible in a hurry. The former defensive lineman went undrafted and signed with the Los Angeles Rams as a UDFA, but a recent court ruling opened the door for 16 football players, including some in NFL training camps, to return to college sports this season if their pro situations change.
For Tennessee, the bigger question is not just whether Moi becomes available, but whether the fit actually lines up on both sides. It remains unclear if he would want to come back to Knoxville, and the Vols would still need to have a place for him on the roster before anything could move forward. [Read more 🡒]
Lady Vols Jersey Reveal Raised One Pat Summitt Question
Tennessees return to Adidas uniforms comes with a first-of-its-kind sponsored jersey patch, as the Lady Vols are set to wear Axle Logistics branding on their game jerseys for the first time in school history. The Knoxville-based company, founded by Tennessee alumni, is in place through the 2030-31 season in a deal valued at more than $3 million per year, adding a new layer to a program long associated with one of the sports most recognizable looks.
The jersey reveal naturally raised a familiar question around a different patch, given how closely Lady Vols fans watch the details of the uniform. Early mock-ups stirred some concern, but the programs traditional Pat Summitt Foundation presence is still part of the design, preserving a key piece of the teams identity even as the new sponsorship arrangement opens a different era. [Read more 🡒]