Third Saturday College Football

The Third Saturday college football in October is the name of an annual college football rivalry game between the University of Alabama Crimson Tide and the University of Tennessee Volunteers. The name refers to the traditional calendar date prior to the 1992 football season, when the Southeastern Conference split into Eastern and Western divisions.[1] From 1995 to 2008, it has only been scheduled for that date five times.

Overall, Alabama leads the series with a 45–38–7 record versus Tennessee.

The first game between the two sides was played in 1901 in Birmingham, ending in a 6–6 tie. From 1902 to 1913, Alabama dominated the series, only losing once, and never allowing a touchdown by the Volunteers. Beginning in 1928, the rivalry was first played on its traditional date and began to be a challenge for the Tide as Robert Neyland began challenging Alabama for their perennial spot on top of the conference standings.

Between 1971–1981, Alabama held an eleven-game winning streak over the Volunteers and, between 1986–1994, a nine-game unbeaten streak. However, following Alabama"s streak, Tennessee responded with a seven-game winning streak from 1995–2001. Since their 2001 meeting, each team has split the series with four wins each. Alabama won the most recent game 29–9 in 2008, and lead the series 45–38–7.