NFL legend Peyton Manning dusted off his old college football uniform for a very special walkout at Morgan Wallen‘s hometown show in Knoxville, Tenn., on Sunday night (Sept. 22).
Wallen, who is currently on his 2024 One Night at a Time Tour, has made a tradition out of entering stadiums flanked by surprise celebrity guests. On the second of his back-to-back nights at Knoxville’s Neyland Stadium, those special guests were Tennessee football stars.
Manning — who was the Tennessee Volunteers’ starting quarterback during his time there in the mid-’90s — brought out his retired Vols jersey for the occasion, complete with his helmet.
Video of the walkout that played on the stadium screens shows Manning giving Wallen a hug backstage, then falling into formation behind him as the country superstar makes his way out to the crowd.
He wasn’t the only football star to come out in support of Wallen’s hometown show. Also in the walkout formation were some current Tennessee players — quarterback Nico Iamaleava and wide receiver Bru McCoy — as well as the team’s current coach, Josh Heupel.
Manning has history with the country genre. Most recently, he co-hosted the 2023 CMA Awards with Luke Bryan.
Morgan Wallen’s Record-Setting Weekend at Neyland Stadium
Wallen’s Sunday show was the second of two hometown shows this weekend; his first night at Neyland Stadium was on Friday (Sept. 20). Eric Church and Miranda Lambert were both surprise guests during his time onstage in Knoxville.
According to a press release, attendance across the two shows totaled 156,161 — a record for a concert event at Neyland Stadium. The record for the most-attended musical weekend at the venue was previously held by the Jackson 5, who played to 148,407 fans across three nights at the venue back in 1984.
Three dates remain in Wallen’s One Night at a Time Tour. They’re all scheduled to take place in October.