KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — For only the second time in history, Tennessee and Purdue crossed paths on the gridiron. The Vols and Boilermakers played in the TransPerfect Music City Bowl Thursday. It was the sixth time in history that Tennessee played a bowl game in its home state.
That game resulted in a loss for Tennessee after a tense match that ran into overtime. Tennessee fell to Purdue 48-45.
Tennessee Head Coach Josh Heupel held a joint press conference with Purdue head coach Jeff Brohm Wednesday, a day ahead of the Music City Bowl, saying the team is excited it gets to play in its home state.
"We are looking forward to a great football game. Purdue is a great football team. We are looking forward to a sold-out stadium and having a lot of fun finishing off our season," he said.
Music City Bowl representatives said the game is just a few hundred seats from being a sellout.
Former UT player Jayson Swain said the game was significant since he said fans may not have had much confidence in The Vols when the season first started. Most said they wouldn't make it to a bowl game, he said.
"It's been a lot of adversity over the last three years so it's just been really cool to see how these players have responded," Swain said.
He said in some ways, it may have appeared as though the Vols were set up to fail. He said that they actually exceeded so many expectations.
"To the coaching. How they played hard. Played for one another. They played in games they weren't supposed to win or compete in," Swain said.
Former head coach Jeremy Pruitt was fired and fan faith was shaken in early 2021. A new athletics director sparked new hope, and Heupel was chosen to lead the team.
"Football, you can just see is on an upward trajectory. The sky is the limit. We're on the right path with the right people," Swain said.
For fans like Ryan Pilgrim, faith in the Vols never waivered. He said he's been a fan his entire life.
"I'd love to be down in Nashville right now," he said. "It doesn't matter who it is. We're going in full force to support them."
No matter the outcome, he said, hope is a very important element to being a true Tennessee fan.
Hayden Myers has always been a UT fan too, but he says he became a super fan after his grandfather died in 2020 — leaving behind his entire collection of rare sports memorabilia.
"It became a passion of mine and I support them to this day," Myers said.
On this game day, Vol fans have all been saying the same thing: "Go big orange, go Vols and let's win this game!"