Peyton Manning showered with boos at Lucas Oil Stadium ahead of Tennessee vs. Kentucky

Friday night, Peyton Manning was back at his old stomping grounds at Lucas Oil Stadium. He was in attendance for Tennessee’s Sweet Sixteen matchup against Kentucky, and Big Blue Nation made its presence known as they showered him with boos.

Manning, of course, knows what it’s like to succeed in Lucas Oil Stadium. His statue stands just outside after a Hall of Fame career with the Indianapolis Colts, including a Super Bowl XLI title, before moving on to the Denver Broncos.

Friday night, however, BBN showed out as Kentucky took on Manning’s alma mater. The boos rang out when he was shown on the jumbotron just before tip-off.

Peyton Manning is in his house for the Sweet 16 between the #Vols and Kentucky! pic.twitter.com/MI2iEwdmfx

— Paige Dauer (@PaigeDauerFDP) March 28, 2025

Manning was sitting behind the Tennessee bench for Friday’s game, which has a spot in the Midwest Regional final on the line. The Volunteers got victories over Wofford and UCLA to secure a spot in the Sweet Sixteen, while Kentucky took down Troy and Illinois to advance to Lucas Oil Stadium.

Ahead of Friday’s game, the Tennessee men’s basketball team paid tribute to Manning. The program made a shrine at his statue, which was unveiled in 2017.

The Volunteers placed small electric candles, multiple basketball jerseys and pom-poms. There was also a signed photo of Manning from his playing days in Knoxville at the feet of the 9-foot-tall, 1,000-pound bronze sculpture.

Not only was Friday’s game in Peyton Manning’s house, but the stakes were even higher for the fan bases. The Kentucky-Tennessee rivalry is one of the best in the SEC, and Vols head coach Rick Barnes knew both teams’ fans would show out.

“People are going to be excited,” Barnes said during his Thursday press conference before practice. “Both teams are going to be excited. And obviously I would assume this is the first time that both teams have ever met in a regional, a first-round game of a regional.

“I just know that both teams – I expect them to be at their very best and I think they would expect the same from us. And how each guy handles that after this many games, I wouldn’t think it would be something they’re going to be too overly amped about. I think you’ve got to be on edge obviously, but our goal is that we can improve – we’ve got one more practice before we play them – that we can improve today and be ready to go tomorrow.”

Alex Byington contributed to this report.