Orange, White or Smokey Grey? Choosing a Custom Tennessee Vols Jersey

The first decision on a custom Tennessee Vols jersey is not the name or the number. It is the color. Tennessee fans have three real options today, orange, white and Smokey Grey, and each one carries a different piece of Volunteer history. Knowing where each color came from makes it easier to design a jersey you will still like five seasons from now.

Where orange and white came from

According to Volopedia, the University of Tennessee Libraries’ encyclopedia of campus history, the colors started with a flower. In 1889 Charles Moore, president of the university’s Athletic Association, chose them for the first Athletic Association field day. He picked “the colors of a flower that grew profusely about the campus,” the American daisy, taking the yellow-orange center and the white petals.

The choice did not stick right away. Volopedia notes that the baseball team chose red and black that same year, and that in 1891 students wore orange and white at a football game against Sewanee. Later in 1891 the student body voted to adopt orange and white. In 1893 students voted to drop the colors, found that “no other combination was found that was satisfactory,” and voted orange and white back in.

So the orange on a Tennessee football jersey custom order is not a marketing color. It is a daisy center that survived two student votes.

The home orange jersey

When Tennessee Athletics introduced its 2013 uniform set, it described the home orange jersey as mostly unchanged since 1936. That long run is why orange is the safest base for a custom Vols jersey. It reads as Tennessee from across a parking lot, and it matches what most fans picture when they think of Neyland Stadium on a Saturday.

Orange works best if you want the jersey to look like the one the team wears at home. Pair it with a classic name and a number that has a personal meaning, and you will have a jersey that does not date quickly.

The white road jersey

The same 2013 Tennessee Athletics release described the away white jersey with a block “Tennessee” across the chest, orange numbers and an orange Power T on the back above the nameplate. White puts more attention on the orange numbers and lettering, so it suits fans who want the name and number to stand out.

White is also a good pick if you already own an orange Vols shirt or hoodie and want something that looks different in photos. Many fans own one of each and rotate by opponent or by weather.

Smokey Grey, the newest member of the rotation

Grey is the color with the shortest history and the most debate. Tennessee Athletics reported that the program first wore its Smokey Gray uniforms against Georgia on October 5, 2013, a 34-31 overtime loss. When the set was announced that August, coach Butch Jones said the staff hoped fans, alumni and students would “welcome the Smokey jersey into traditions.”

The same release noted that the 2013 grey game would be only the third time since the 1930s that a Vols team had worn a non-orange uniform at Shields-Watkins Field, after a 2004 white throwback and a 2009 black jersey. Since then grey has returned in later seasons and designs.

Grey suits fans who want a jersey that still says Tennessee but is less expected than orange. The jersey pictured above, a Star Thomas #9 Tennessee Vols Rebrand 2026 Checkerboard design in Smokey Grey, is one example of a grey base.

Picking a name and number for a custom Vols jersey

Once the color is settled, the rest of a personalized Tennessee Vols jersey comes down to two lines of text. A few approaches fans use:

• Your own surname and a family number. A birth year, a jersey number you wore in high school, or a parent’s number all work.
• A year from the color story. “89” for the 1889 daisy, or “13” for the first Smokey Grey game, is a small detail other Vols fans may recognize.
• A nickname. Short nicknames fit the nameplate more cleanly than long surnames. Keep it to what you would want printed for years.

Before you finish a custom Tennessee football jersey, check spelling twice and compare the listing’s size chart with a jersey you already own.

Football or baseball?

Not every Tennessee fan wants a football cut. Tennessee baseball has its own following, and a baseball jersey suits spring and summer games. If you split your Saturdays between Neyland and Lindsey Nelson Stadium, it can make sense to own one of each.

Where to start

Browse the custom Tennessee Volunteer jersey page to pick a base and add your name and number. If you follow the diamond more than the gridiron, the custom Tennessee Volunteers baseball jersey page covers that sport.

Orange for tradition, white for contrast, grey for something newer. Choose the color first and the rest of the design tends to fall into place.