Tennessee football will once again play in Nissan Stadium for the third time since 2021. This time, it will be against Illinois from the Big Ten conference in the Music City Bowl. Volunteers fans aren't happy about this, and rightfully so.
The Music City bowl isn't exactly prestigious and it seems like a fitting way to end a 8-4 campaign that was filled with highs and lows.
The main goal this season for Tennessee was to return to the College Football Playoff. That's no doubt, but the fact that the Volunteers have to go to Nashville is a gut punch. Fans don't even have an excuse to take a vacation to Tampa, Florida, during the holiday season now.
Many fans on X have gone as far as to say that Tennessee and Josh Heupel should decline the bid, which is a bit extreme in my opinion. Let's be honest, nobody wants to play in a bowl in this era of college football unless it's a College Football Playoff game, but glass-half-full, this is an opportunity for the young guys to get a few extra weeks of practice and live reps.
Another wrinkle to this bowl game is that Illinois and Tennessee have never met before. Since this would be the first time both programs have faced each other on the gridiron, this at least adds an exciting angle to the game. The Vols could also avenge a basketball loss to Illinois earlier this month.
Josh Heupel has his work cut out for him this offseason. The Vols need a plethora of big boys on the defensive front seven and multiple defensive backs. Bowl season is an excellent time for Heupel to get one last look at his roster before he makes changes during the offseason.
Given how the Vols played this year, they don't deserve a better bowl, but now we can at least cap off the year on a positive note and move on to 2026.