Dave HartKNOXVILLE -- The University of Tennessee moved quickly to find the replacement for its 2015 football season opener.
The Volunteers, originally scheduled to face Alabama-Birmingham at LP Field in Nashville to open next season, announced Tuesday morning they instead will face Bowling Green in September.
UAB's Blazers officially shut down their football program last week, leaving Tennessee with a void on its schedule just nine months in advance, when many schedules are already set.
"We are pleased to announce that we have been able to maintain our plans to open the 2015 season in Nashville, now against Bowling Green," Tennessee athletic director Dave Hart said in a released statement.
There was never any real threat the Vols wouldn't be able to play the Sept. 5 opener in Nashville, but the Falcons will carry a heftier price tag.
According to the game contract, Tennessee will pay Bowling Green $1.2 million for the game. The Vols were set to pay UAB $925,000, and the Blazers owe that to Tennessee for breaking their contract. Hart and Bowling Green athletic director Chris Kingston both signed the deal Thursday, two days after UAB's shutdown.
Bowling Green was in a similar situation after South Carolina State backed out of a game scheduled for Sept. 3.
"We are looking forward to opening the 2015 football season with Tennessee in Nashville," Kingston said in a released statement. "The Tennessee staff has always been terrific to work with, and it was great to quickly put this together with such an exceptional Southeastern Conference team, especially after losing our opening game.
"This gives us an opportunity to better shape our schedule."
It will be the first meeting between Tennessee and Bowling Green.
The Falcons went 7-5 this season and beat Indiana at home in September, one week before the Hoosiers upset eventual SEC East Division winner Missouri in Columbia.
Bowling Green won the Mid-American Conference's East Division and lost 51-17 to Northern Illinois in the MAC title game last Friday. The Falcons will play South Alabama in the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl on Dec. 20.
That will be the program's third bowl game in as many years. The Falcons were 10-3 and won the MAC title in 2013 in their final season under former Tennessee offensive coordinator Dave Clawson, who then left for Wake Forest. Clawson was 32-31 in five seasons at Bowling Green, and the Falcons replaced him with Eastern Illinois coach Dino Babers.
Tennessee is 5-0 all-time against current members of the MAC. The Vols last faced a MAC opponent in 2012, when they beat Akron 47-26 in Knoxville. Tennessee also recently beat Buffalo (2011), Ohio (2009) and Northern Illinois (2008).
Bowling Green last played an SEC team in 2013, when it lost 21-20 at Mississippi State after a late drive failed to reach field-goal range. The Falcons lost 27-14 at Florida in the 2012 opener. Bowling Green is 4-7 all-time against current SEC members and won at Missouri in 2002, but its last win against an SEC team was against Kentucky in 1985.
Tennessee's other nonconference games are at home against Oklahoma, Western Carolina and North Texas.
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.