Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton says the Volunteers have turned down a chance to play Southern California in the 2011 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game.
Hamilton says he’s been approached several times by Chick-fil-A Bowl president Gary Stokan about the potential 2011 matchup.
He’s told Stokan the Vols’ schedule can’t accommodate another tough opponent during a year that will be part of the team’s rebuilding efforts.
Hamilton says the decision wasn’t related to any bad blood between the programs after Lane Kiffin left Tennessee in January and that the Vols would have turned down the chance to face any major BCS opponent in the Chick-fil-A game played in Atlanta.
Tennessee’s 2011 football schedule includes non-conference games against BCS opponents Cincinnati and North Carolina.
The Volunteers have agreed to play the Trojans during the 2021 and 2022 football seasons.
