Tennessee opens the road portion of its season Saturday night against Georgia Tech in Atlanta.
ATLANTA (Smokies.LIVE GameDay Center) — It’s game day for the Tennessee Volunteers.
No. 18 Tennessee heads to Atlanta on Saturday for its first trip to Georgia Tech since 1986, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. ET at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
The Vols enter the matchup riding a 19-game winning streak in nonconference regular-season games.
Tennessee’s captains for Saturday are Bennett Brady, Arion Carter, Ethan Davis and Jeremiah Telander.
The Vols opened the 2026 season with a 56-9 victory over Furman, but Saturday’s game is expected to provide a much tougher test — particularly for Tennessee’s secondary.
Secondary faces a bigger challenge
Co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach Anthony Poindexter said Tennessee’s defensive backs showed they understood the system in the season opener and handled the environment without losing focus.
The Vols also showed improved communication, something Poindexter said was especially important in a loud stadium.
Tennessee’s defenders relied on hand signals and eye contact to stay on the same page, and Poindexter said there were few communication breakdowns.
The bigger test comes Saturday.
Georgia Tech is expected to challenge Tennessee down the field with talented receivers on the outside, giving the Vols’ secondary an opportunity to show how it responds against a more aggressive passing attack.
“We didn’t get tested a ton with deep passes and stuff like that, so this week will be a good test,” Poindexter said.
GameDay facts
- Who: No. 18 Tennessee vs. Georgia Tech
- When: 7 p.m. ET Saturday
- Where: Bobby Dodd Stadium, Atlanta
- TV: ESPN
- Series: Tennessee leads 25-17-2
- Last meeting: Tennessee won 42-41 in two overtimes in 2017
- Last Tennessee trip to Atlanta: 1986
- Nonconference streak: 19 consecutive regular-season wins
For Tennessee, Saturday night is more than the second game of the season. It’s the first road test of the 2026 campaign — and a chance for a Vols defense that looked disciplined in Week 1 to prove it can communicate and execute when the competition gets tougher.
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