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Remembering Tennessee basketball’s four games vs. Rick Barnes-led Texas

By Caleb Calhoun

GREENSBORO, NC - MARCH 21: Head coach Rick Barnes of the Texas Longhorns directs his team against the Duke Blue Devils during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum on March 21, 2009 in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
GREENSBORO, NC - MARCH 21: Head coach Rick Barnes of the Texas Longhorns directs his team against the Duke Blue Devils during the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum on March 21, 2009 in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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NEW ORLEANS – MARCH 14: Head coach Buzz Peterson of the University of Tennessee watches the action during the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament against Auburn University at the Louisiana Superdome on March 14, 2003 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Auburn University defeated the University of Tennesse 66-53. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS – MARCH 14: Head coach Buzz Peterson of the University of Tennessee watches the action during the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament against Auburn University at the Louisiana Superdome on March 14, 2003 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Auburn University defeated the University of Tennesse 66-53. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images) /

On Saturday, Rick Barnes will travel to Austin to face the Texas Longhorns for the first time since they fired him nearly seven years ago. Tennessee basketball swooped him up at the time after having to fire Donnie Tyndall due to NCAA investigations. It was ironic because in the mid-2000s, the two UTs had some fierce battles.

For four straight years, the Vols and Longhorns played each other while Barnes was coaching Texas. It remains the only four years these two schools have played each other since the 1950s and 1960s. Obviously, with Texas about to join the SEC, that will change soon.

Before these two face off with Barnes on the Vols’ sideline for the first time, let’s look back on the games between the two schools in which he was with the Longhorns. We’ll rank all for games between the two schools with Barnes coaching Texas by how memorable they were for Tennessee basketball and discuss the importance of them.

2004-2005. Maui, Hawaii. 467. Lahaina Civic Center. 70. 534. Maui Invitational. 95

Rank: 4; Date: Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2004

The first matchup between these two schools when Rick Barnes coached Texas took place during the Buzz Peterson era. UT was coming off back to back NIT appearances, but they returned everybody from the previous year, so in his fourth season on the job, Peterson was expected to finally get the Vols back into the NCAA Tournament.

This was one of two games that showed it wouldn’t go that way. Rocky Top opened the season at the Maui Invitational and showed promise by upsetting the Stanford Cardinal. However, then they got blown out by the eventual national champion North Carolina Tar Heels.

In the consolation third-place game, they faced Barnes and the Longhorns, who were No. 15 in the AP Poll and No. 13 in the Coaches Poll. Once again, they got blown out, falling to 1-2 on the year. A week and a half later, they lost at home to the Chattanooga Mocs, showing the season was a loss, and Tennessee basketball fired Peterson at the end of it after going 14-17.

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