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Tennessee football: Vols should only ‘Checker Neyland’ with ‘Smokey Greys’

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 24: DeAndre Goolsby #30 of the Florida Gators makes a three-yard touchdown reception against the Tennessee Volunteers in the first quarter at Neyland Stadium on September 24, 2016 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 24: DeAndre Goolsby #30 of the Florida Gators makes a three-yard touchdown reception against the Tennessee Volunteers in the first quarter at Neyland Stadium on September 24, 2016 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee football asked Vols fans to ‘Checker Neyland’ on Saturday against Georgia. But the Volunteers shouldn’t do it without the ‘Smokey Grey’ uniforms.

Related Story: 5 Vols to watch for vs. Georgia

With his approval rating among Tennessee football fans at an all-time low, Butch Jones is pulling out the splash moves again. And to generate fan interest, the Vols have one of their recurring gimmicks coming Saturday.

Fans are asked to ‘Checker Neyland’ Saturday against the Georgia Bulldogs, according to the Checker Neyland Twitter account.

They posted the tweet on Monday evening.

‘Checker Neyland’ is fine, but Tennessee football has a huge caveat that needs to come with it. They have to wear the ‘Smokey Grey’ uniforms.

The Vols started off 0-2 when checkering Neyland Stadium. They blew a 9-0 lead to the Florida Gators in 2014 with ‘Checker Neyland’ and then a 17-0 lead to the Oklahoma Sooners in 2015 with ‘Checker Neyland.’

Finally, they broke the curse last year against Florida of all teams, when they checkered Neyland and also had the ‘Smokey Grey’ uniforms.

That resulted in one of the greatest second halves in school history, when the Vols dropped 35 unanswered against their hated rivals.

Meanwhile, the ‘Smokey Grey’ uniforms date back to 2013. Tennessee almost beat the Georgia Bulldogs when they had a national title caliber team at the time.

Then they turned around their 2015 season in the ‘Smokey Greys’ with a huge win over the Dawgs, coming back from a 24-3 deficit. And in addition to ending that infamous losing streak to Florida, they also dominated the Nebraska Cornhuskers in 2016. Remember, Nebraska owned the Vols in the late 1990s.

So the ‘Smokey Greys’ are clearly a good-luck charm for the Vols. And that’s the only way ‘Checker Neyland’ works.

We’ve heard rumors that Tennessee football will bust out those uniforms as well this Saturday against the Dawgs. This was posted on the school football program’s Twitter account today.

If this is true, the Vols could actually be in good shape. History favors them significantly. However, if it isn’t, you can write this game off as another loss for the Vols.

Next: Week 4 SEC Power Rankings: Vols near the bottom

Yes, we believe that ‘Checker Neyland’ is that much of a curse. Tennessee cannot use it alone. But when they add the ‘Smokey Greys,’ they are bound for a legendary and memorable performance. And Butch Jones needs that more than ever.

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