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Anthem Outcry Overshadows Texas-Tennessee Thriller
29 Sep
Summary
- National anthem performance drew online criticism before Texas-Tennessee game.
- Ella Langley's song about Texas was met with boos in Knoxville.
- Texas narrowly defeated Tennessee 20-17 in their first on-campus meeting.
The recent highly anticipated football game between No. 1 Texas and No. 14 Tennessee at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville was overshadowed by pregame controversies.
The national anthem performance before the highly-touted matchup drew widespread criticism on social media due to its unconventional delivery, with clips circulating online before kickoff.
Adding to the unusual pregame atmosphere, country singer Ella Langley faced boos from a portion of the Knoxville crowd during her performance of "Choosin' Texas" due to its Texas-themed lyrics. This incident occurred prior to the football game and also gained significant online attention.
The game itself marked the first on-campus meeting between Texas and Tennessee, with Texas ultimately triumphing 20-17. Despite the on-field drama, including a standout performance by Texas's Colin Simmons who tied a program record with five sacks, the off-field discussions about the anthem and the concert remained a notable part of the weekend's narrative.
The massive crowd of 101,915 spectators at Neyland Stadium underscored the significance of the event, which served as part of Texas's integration into the SEC and a major non-conference game for Tennessee.
