University of Tennessee, Knoxville School Colors
University of Tennessee, Knoxville's school colors are Tennessee Orange (#FF8200) and White (#FFFFFF). Tennessee's brand standards define 3 colors in all; every official HEX, RGB, CMYK and Pantone value is listed below, along with the story of how the colors were chosen.
History of the Tennessee colors
Charles Moore, president of the university's Athletic Association, picked orange and white for the first field day in April 1889, taking the colors from the American daisy that grew on campus: the yellow-orange center and the white petals. The student body voted to adopt orange and white as the school colors in 1891. About two years later students voted to drop them, but they could not agree on anything better and voted orange and white back in. Today the university's brand standards name Pantone 151 as the official Tennessee Orange.
Sources: volopedia.lib.utk.edu · brand.utk.edu
Photo: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo: TN 66, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Tennessee primary colors
| Color | HEX | RGB | CMYK | Pantone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee Orange | #FF8200 | 255, 130, 0 | 0, 55, 100, 0 | PMS 151 | |
| White | #FFFFFF | 255, 255, 255 | 0, 0, 0, 0 | — | |
| Smokey Gray | #4B4B4B | 75, 75, 75 | 0, 0, 0, 85 | PMS Cool Gray 11 |
Matching Tennessee colors on clothing
Clothing sold as a given color can be noticeably off from Tennessee's official values, and supplier color codes describe the dye target rather than the finished fabric. So we measured the actual fabric color of every garment we carry from product photos and fabric swatches, then compared it to Tennessee's official colors. The pieces below are the closest in-stock matches, out of 80 styles close to Tennessee Orange.
Clothing in Tennessee Orange #FF8200
Blank apparel whose fabric color is a close match to Tennessee Orange, measured from the garment itself. 80 matching styles in stock.
Tennessee colors: frequently asked questions
What are Tennessee school colors?
University of Tennessee, Knoxville's school colors are Tennessee Orange (#FF8200) and White (#FFFFFF). The official brand palette also includes Smokey Gray as a primary color.
What is the hex code for Tennessee Orange?
Tennessee Orange is #FF8200 (RGB 255, 130, 0, CMYK 0, 55, 100, 0).
What Pantone color is Tennessee Orange?
Tennessee Orange is PMS 151.
Why are Tennessee's colors Tennessee Orange and White?
Charles Moore, president of the university's Athletic Association, picked orange and white for the first field day in April 1889, taking the colors from the American daisy that grew on campus: the yellow-orange center and the white petals. The student body voted to adopt orange and white as the school colors in 1891.
Color values are taken from the official University of Tennessee, Knoxville brand standards (source), checked October 2026. Sweatshirt Station is not affiliated with or endorsed by University of Tennessee, Knoxville. We sell blank apparel in matching colors; no logos or trademarks are sold. Photos are used under their Creative Commons or public domain licenses and are credited above.