The Third Saturday in October features one of college football’s most iconic traditions: the postgame cigar celebration.
This year, No. 6 Alabama (5-1, 3-1 SEC) visits No. 14 Tennessee (5-1, 2-1) on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET/ABC), and the winner will have a chance to celebrate with a tradition that dates back more than six decades.
The modern ritual took hold in 1961, when Alabama athletic trainer Jim Goostree, a Tennessee alumnus working under head coach Bear Bryant, helped cement the custom after Alabama snapped a six-game winless streak (0-5-1) against the Volunteers.
Following a 34-3 victory, Goostree reportedly danced in the locker room as promised and handed out victory cigars to Alabama players and coaches.
The celebration became a lasting tradition in the Alabama-Tennessee rivalry, with cigars serving as a symbol of victory on the Third Saturday in October.
In 2022, Tennessee ended its 15-game losing streak against Alabama with a dramatic 52-49 victory, giving Volunteers fans a long-awaited reason to celebrate.
Over the decades, the celebration expanded beyond the locker room.
These days, the winning school’s fan base fills the stadium and local streets with clouds of smoke, while cigar shops in and around Tuscaloosa and Knoxville prepare months in advance for the massive surge in demand.
Not every player actually smokes his victory cigar. Some have opted to keep theirs as trophies, preserving a memento of the rivalry win instead.
Though the NCAA implemented a ban on tobacco products on the field and in locker rooms in the 1990s, both universities are said to pay the nominal fine each year to keep the custom alive.
They said it
“Hey, it’s about this team. This is for our former players, our fans. We know what this means … everybody’s lighting a cigar tonight!” — Tennessee coach Josh Heupel, after the Vols’ win in 2022
“The great thing about it is to see the players have so much fun, be so excited after the game and have so much fun with the whole thing. It’s a unique locker room, believe me.” — former Alabama coach Nick Saban, after his team’s 34-20 win over Tennessee in 2023, his final season leading the Crimson Tide
“I absolutely smoked a cigar. For guys like my holder (Paxton Brooks), who has been in this program since 2018 and this fanbase, I had to smoke a cigar with them. It’s such an awesome memory and to get that win for the fanbase and the team, it’s a blessing.” — former Vols kicker Chase McGrath, who kicked the decisive 40-yard field goal as time expired in 2022
“I’m not very good at it.” — Alabama wide receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams, who is expected to miss Saturday’s game with a concussion, after the Tide’s win in 2025
“I don’t like that stink. I had to take a shower to get that smell off me.” — former Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe, after the Tide’s win in 2023
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Mike Garbett is a content specialist working with McClatchy’s Content Innovation Lab.