The University of Tennessee announced a partnership with Pilot on Tuesday.
UT vice chancellor and director of athletics Danny White discussed Tennessee’s new partnership with Pilot.
“We are extremely excited and absolutely thrilled to embark on it,” White said. “It wasn’t that long ago we celebrated the 100-year anniversary in Neyland Stadium. What does the next 100 years look like, and that’s what today is all about. Y’all have heard me talk about big-time aspirations here. This is a big day for our university, for our athletics department, and certainly for our football program, our football stadium and our fan experience here, but we are constantly looking for ways to generate revenue.
“Thread the needle between being innovative and finding ways where we can look a little bit like pro sports. Also, understand the history and pageantry of college athletics. Certainly, here more than anywhere else in the country and with this iconic building. We have done a lot of things to try to move the needle and increase our resource base and to move the needle in our corporate sponsorships space in everything that we do. We are going to continue to have our foot on the accelerator as we work to build the best athletic department in the country. I have still not found a reason why we can’t do that in Knoxville.
“We have every possibility of doing that. I won’t bore you with all the metrics that you all know about that’s been accomplished here for the last few years. We are as excited as ever with what can be accomplished here. About three and a half years ago, I think it was my first month on the job. We had renderings, and we had blueprints, and all sorts of things for a Neyland Stadium project that just needed to be pressed go. Maybe I was young and dumb enough to do it without knowing how we were going to pay for it all. In all seriousness, we have built a business plan on how we are going to get this project going as quickly as possible, but we knew all along we needed a lead corporate partner for the short and long term viability of this stadium.
“It’s a 337-million-dollar project. The vast majority of the improvements to this stadium are for our fan experience. We have the best fans in all of sports, not just college. They have proven that time and time again. Neyland Stadium is sold out with a waiting list of 15,000 strong. Our basketball is sold out. Baseball and softball are sold out. I’m not sure there is another school in the country that has that kind of support across the board from our fans. They show up on the road and they show up here in Knoxville like no other. We will not take them for granted.
“We are investing in their experience. That’s what this is about. Neyland Stadium is iconic. It’s historical. It’s an unbelievable building, but it can get a little more comfortable. The fan experience can get a little better. We know that we need to improve on that, and we are working to do that every day.
“When I first met Adam Wright, just a little over a year ago, and his wife Sabrina they moved here to Knoxville. The new leadership at Pilot, and talking about the next chapter not only for Tennessee and Tennessee Football but Pilot. How we can work together to make this happen for our community and our fans?
“I think today is about two historic brands in Knoxville coming together. What I have been thinking about a lot this week is if Tennessee athletics is thriving and Pilot is thriving then the community of Knoxville and East Tennessee is thriving. We can provide value to all of our corporate sponsors. Certainly, at this level, with national exposure and national value. We can work together to make this an even better place to live in as we move forward. When we are playing football games, when we are having concerts, and some of the other stuff we are working on, really 365 days a year. Excited to move forward with this announcement and with the long-term partnership with Tennessee Athletics and with Neyland Stadium and with Pilot. I really appreciate you guys all coming together today.”
