The upcoming Tennessee–Nebraska home-and-home series set for the 2026-27 seasons has been canceled, according to ESPN insider Pete Thamel.
According to Thamel, Nebraska requested the cancellation of the series, which was originally scheduled to start with the Cornhuskers hosting the Volunteers in Lincoln in 2026, followed by a return game in Knoxville in 2027. The report indicated that the Huskers aimed to secure eight home games in 2027 due to planned renovations at Memorial Stadium.
Tennessee athletic director Danny White emphasized that the cancellation was entirely Nebraska’s decision in a “correction” quote tweet responding to Thamel’s original report.
“Correction: Tennessee is not canceling this series. Nebraska did,” White tweeted Friday morning. “We are very disappointed that they didn’t want to play these games, especially this close to 2026.”
This is the second time the first-ever regular-season football series between the Huskers and Volunteers has been altered following the decision to move the dates of the original series from 2016-17 back a decade to 2026-27 in order to accommodate a scheduling change from Tennessee in 2013. Oregon ultimately replaced the Vols on Nebraska’s 2016-17 schedules with both teams winning their respective home games.
The Cornhuskers and Volunteers have previously played each other three times, the last coming in the 2016 Music City Bowl when Tennessee beat Nebraska, 38-24. The Huskers hold a 2-1 advantage in the all-time series after winning the previous two bowl game matchups in the 1998 Orange Bowl and the 2000 Fiesta Bowl.
