Ut Gifts

The state received the "Volunteer" moniker in the nineteenth century thanks to Tennesseans’ willingness to serve their country in the military. References to the Tennessee Volunteers began during the War of 1812 when Tennesseans volunteered en masse in response to President James Madison's call for service. Then during the Mexican War, when the secretary of state asked for 2,800 Tennessee volunteers he got 30,000 respondents, clinching the state's nickname as the Volunteer State. The Atlanta Constitution was the first to call UT athletes "Volunteers," after a Tennessee–Georgia Tech football game in 1902.