The 2026–27 Lady Vols schedule has already earned attention for UCLA, UConn, Baylor and the usual SEC heavyweight parade. But tucked inside all that serious basketball are a few games with a different kind of voltage.
Tennessee will see former teammates. It will see a former coach. And some of those reunions will come in places where the past is going to feel awfully close.
The first arrives Dec. 3, when the Lady Vols travel to Virginia Tech in the SEC/ACC Challenge. Alyssa Latham spent the last two seasons in Knoxville before heading back to the ACC, where she began her college career at Syracuse. Now she has a chance to face Tennessee in Blacksburg with one final season to make her own.
Then comes Kaniya Boyd’s return to the schedule. The former Lady Vol guard transferred to Texas A&M after appearing in 59 games across two Tennessee seasons, and the Lady Vols visit College Station on Dec. 31. That is a New Year’s Eve road game with enough built-in familiarity to make the scouting report feel personal.
Aggies coach Joni Taylor called Boyd “an elite defender with the ability to create shots for others as well as for herself,” adding that her SEC and NCAA Tournament experience would lift Texas A&M’s backcourt. Tennessee knows that experience well.
The most emotionally charged reunion, though, may be waiting Jan. 3 in Knoxville.
Ole Miss comes to Food City Center with Talaysia Cooper and Jaida Civil now wearing Rebel colors. Cooper was Tennessee’s leading scorer, assister and steals leader last season, posting 16.0 points, 3.6 assists and 2.7 steals per game while earning a second straight All-SEC Second Team nod.
That is not just a former player coming back for a polite handshake line. That is a former centerpiece returning with a talented Ole Miss team and every reason to want her new home to win.
Rebels coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin called Cooper “a key piece” in Ole Miss’ reload and said she has “no doubt” Cooper can thrive with a fresh start. The Lady Vols will not need a reminder of what Cooper can do; she scored 30 points against Ole Miss in Oxford last season.
And then, on Feb. 14, Tennessee heads to Missouri for the first regular-season meeting with Kellie Harper since she took over the Tigers. Harper is forever part of Lady Vol history—as a player for Pat Summitt and as Tennessee’s head coach from 2019 through 2024—but this will not be a nostalgia tour.
These games should be respectful. They may even be warm before tipoff.
Once the ball goes up, though, the Lady Vols will be facing people who know exactly how much beating Tennessee still means.
– Vol Hoops Staff Writer