Men’s soccer was first organized in 1920 as part of the compulsory physical training course. The first instruction in soccer was provided for the Athletics Department by freshman student D. H. Powell from Memphis. The UT men’s soccer team began as one of the first two sports clubs in 1966. At that time, it consisted predominantly of international students, but, within a decade, the players were predominantly from Tennessee or neighboring states.
In 1982 Coach John Pearson and volunteers who were interested in the sport introduced the UT team, as a club, into NCAA competition. The team won the SEC tournament in 1980, 1981, and 1982. In 1983 the Athletics Board approved NCAA affiliation for the team, whose fans hoped that the interest in soccer would lead to absorption of the program by the Athletics Department. In spring 1987 the UT Athletics Board Executive Committee returned the program to club status, acting on a request from the program precipitated by the resignation of Coach Leon Potgieter, the lack of designated practice or playing facilities, and the lack of infrastructure to deal with NCAA compliance. The club regrouped, however, and won the SEC tournament in 1987 and 1988.