The Vols have a very tough non-conference schedule each season, and it's stats with Tennessee taking on a week in Las Vegas playing in the Players Era tournament like last season. If you recall, last year, the Tennessee Vols fell victim to the tournament’s flawed format. The Vols defeated Rutgers and Houston, but were placed in the third-place game because of tiebreakers. To be fair, Michigan ended up winning the tournament and was the best team, but Tennessee still went 2–0 and never got the chance to compete for the title.
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With that said, the good news is that Rick Barnes won't run into that problem this year, as the Players ERA is split into two different tournaments that will be bracket-style. One tournament is eight teams, and the other is 16. The Vols will play in the 16-team pod with some other big-time teams like Michigan, Louisville, Gonzaga, and more. This should prove to be a big test to see where the Vols stack up against the rest of the competition with their newly assembled roster.
Players Era announce their 2 BRACKETS.
— Ryan Hammer🔨 (@ryanhammer09) May 7, 2026
Will be 2 separate over 2 weeks in November. With the general MTE restrictions it is impossible to do one big 24 team bracket without any tiebreakers or uneven game totals (trust me I tried)
They heard the concerns & gave us BRACKETS. pic.twitter.com/4qVfIwHnAt
The Players Era is now bracket style
I’m a huge fan of this change because last year’s format just didn’t make sense. Michigan was the best team for sure, but they got to beat up on San Diego State and go straight to the finals because of their point differential. Meanwhile Tennessee had to battle a very good Houston team and somehow ended up in the third-place game.
Now the Players Era has a standard bracket format like every other November tournament, so there’s really nothing left to complain about. If you win, you move on. If you lose, you’re out. It’s simple, no more tiebreakers or point differential deciding things, just winners and losers.
I'm excited for this upcoming feast week because we get to see the Vols' new roster take on quality teams. While the schedule is not out yet, until this tournament, it will likely be Tennesse whopping up on a bunch of mid-majors. This will mark the first "real" test for Tennessee.
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