On the Sidelines with the University of Tennessee

When it’s game day in Knoxville, you better wear your Tennessee orange and arrive early to find parking just about anywhere. This city is serious about its football, and the third Saturday in October always brings the buzz — it’s Alabama week.

When you arrive on campus, you’ll be greeted by tailgates, crazy fans, parades, and of course, the Tennessee spirit squads. Complete with an impressive coed cheer team, reigning national championship dance team, character mascots, and the beloved Smokey X (the real barking dog), you can’t avoid joining in the game day festivities.

We’re going to take you inside Neyland Stadium and onto the sidelines in front of 102,455 fans. Pretty cool, right? But contrary to popular belief, the spirit squads don’t just show up on the sidelines to cheer on the team. Their day starts much earlier with appearances, parades, fan interaction, and more…

Game day kicked off bright and early on the Hill with SEC Nation appearances.

Around noon, the team jumped in the van and made its way to the Tennessee spirit locker room for a team huddle.

Coach Joy Postell-Gee made sure everyone was up-to-date on the game day schedule and pre-game festivities.

Then it was time to rally that big orange spirit; the team made their way to the Tennessee Tailgate and other fan get-togethers.

The “Vol Walk” was next on the agenda. The spirit squad stopped by Peyton Manning Way for some cheers, chants, band dances, and the traditional walk to Neyland Stadium.

After the walk, some of the cheerleaders made their way back up the hill to prep for the band walk, while others took to the field for practice. This is the final pre-game event that leads fans into the stadium for kickoff.

As the stands began the transition from white to orange, the band marched onto the field for the biggest tradition of all — forming the “T” where the players and the spirit squad would run onto the field!

The game was electric. The fans and the teams gave it their all. In the end, Tennessee fell short of a victory, but the Volunteers kept up their spirits and ended the game arm in arm for the traditional “Tennessee Waltz.”

Coming Soon, Friday Nov. 18th:

Watch the trailer: Taylor and the Tennessee Spirit Squads rally their fans on game day in the new film, It’s Game Day: Tennessee!