(Photo via Austin Perryman/Tennessee Athletics)
It’s nearly time for Tennessee Basketball’s annual ‘Checker FCC’ game. In one of the great fan traditions around the country, Tennessee’s fans will checker the Food City Center orange and white on Saturday night for the Vols’ game against the Auburn Tigers.
Fans attending the game are encouraged to check for their section’s color online and then wear that corresponding color for the game on Saturday.
To find out your color for the game, head to www.CheckerTN.com.
Students heading to the game are in the clear, though. UberEats is providing orange and white t-shirts for the students in attendance for Saturday night’s game.
hey @RockyTopRowdies, @UberEats has you covered🤝 pic.twitter.com/QIeB1xE8EO
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) January 30, 2026
More From RTI: What Steven Pearl Said About Returning To Alma Mater Tennessee As Auburn Head Coach
Tennessee (14-6, 4-3 SEC) will host Auburn (14-7, 5-3 SEC) on Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. ET in the Food City Center. The Volunteers are a point favorite heading into the SEC contest.
“Well, I think, again, Steven has done a really good job,” Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said about Auburn on Friday. “I think that they continue to get better all year, which that’s what you’re looking for. And (they’re) playing with confidence. And he does, again, a terrific job of getting his guys where he wants them to be. And they’re doing a lot of really good things.”
Steven Pearl, in his first year as head coach after taking the reins from his father, Bruce, is returning to a familiar location this weekend. Pearl played at Tennessee for four years from 2007 to 2011.
“I don’t want to make it about me,” Pearl said. “I’ve been there before as an assistant, so I don’t think the emotions will be much different. I played five years there and gave all my blood, sweat and tears to that university, and had a lot of great times and won a lot of games. There’s so many things that happened at Tennessee that have shaped my life to what it is today, so I’m eternally grateful. I would like a Letterman’s jacket at some point, because I still haven’t gotten that, but my years there were some of the best of my life personally, because it shaped the man I am today and a lot of things kind of fell in place for me to be where I’m at, in this chair.”
ESPN Analytics has Tennessee with a 69.6% chance to win the game, but the Tigers have been on a hot streak lately. Auburn has won four straight SEC games with victories over South Carolina, Ole Miss, Florida, and Texas. Tennessee, meanwhile, has built up a little momentum itself. After starting SEC play 2-3 with two road losses, the Volunteers have rattled off two straight road wins with victories at Alabama and Georgia.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for live coverage of the game on Saturday night in the checkered-out Food City Center.