Henry To’oTo’o won’t be lacking for directions this weekend.
Alabama’s senior linebacker who began his career at Tennessee will make his one and only return to Neyland Stadium as an opposing player Saturday afternoon when the No. 3 Crimson Tide visit the No. 6 Volunteers. The 6-foot-2, 228-pounder from Sacramento, California, likely will elicit a multitude of reactions from the 101,915 in attendance for the first pairing of top-six teams in the history of the Third Saturday in October rivalry.
“I’m definitely super excited, and you guys already know my journey and where I started,” To’oTo’o said Monday during a news conference. “It will be a huge challenge, because they’re a great team. It’s going to be a great environment, and I’m super excited about playing in another hostile environment and being able to test who we are as a team.
“It’s another game on the road for us, but it’s a big rivalry game tradition-wise. This tradition runs deep, and I’m super excited to be able able to uphold that tradition and that legacy of Alabama football.”
To’oTo’o was on the wrong end of 35-13 and 48-17 outcomes with the Volunteers during the 2019 and 2020 seasons, but he got to enjoy the victory cigar following Alabama’s 52-24 win last October in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide’s four-touchdown win — though it was just 31-24 early in the fourth quarter — was their 15th straight in the colorful and historic series.