Mark a spot on those 2016 and 2017 calendars -- and use Big Red ink.

You can officially add the tradition-rich Nebraska Cornhuskers to Tennessee's long-range football schedules.

The Vols and Huskers announced Thursday a finalized deal to send UT to Lincoln, Neb., on Sept. 10, 2016, and Nebraska to Neyland Stadium on Sept. 9, 2017.

UT athletic director Mike Hamilton said negotiations have been in the works for months.

With schedules growing from 11 to 12 regular-season games, the Vols have made it clear they aren't backing away from marquee opposition.

UT coach Phillip Fulmer admits to being a long-time follower of the Nebraska tradition and didn't bat an eye when Hamilton told him of the deal.

"He likes the tradition-rich matchups like this one," Hamilton said. "He has never really flinched when I've approached him with a game like this."

Nebraska leads the all-time series 2-0, both of those victories coming in bowl games when the Huskers beat UT 42-17 in the 1998 Orange Bowl and 31-21 in the 2000 Fiesta Bowl.

Sandwiched between those losses, Tennessee won a National Championship with a 23-16 victory against Florida State in the 1999 Fiesta Bowl.

"Mike has done a great job of keeping the intersectional portion of our schedule very competitive," Fulmer said in a UT release. "I've followed the history of the University of Nebraska since my playing days. Coach (Bob) Devaney and Coach (Tom) Osborne, those were two individuals I followed during my early coaching years at Wichita State and since I have been here at Tennessee.

"It should be a great matchup."

Nebraska joins Oregon (2010-2013), North Carolina (2011-2012) and Oklahoma (2014-2015) on the list of high-profile programs playing Tennessee in a home-and-home series the next decade.

"The University of Tennessee and the University of Nebraska share rich football histories with great coaches, players and fans," Hamilton said. "Knoxville and Lincoln are two of the great college towns, and I know our respective fans and teams will look forward to these games with great anticipation."

Nebraska athletic director Steve Pederson had the same sort of reaction.

"Nebraska and Tennessee have two of the best fan bases in college football," he said, "and bringing these two traditional powers together in two of the best stadiums in the country is extremely exciting."

Pederson joined the Vols football staff in 1991 and became an assistant athletic director in charge of recruiting, then was elevated to associate AD in charge of football operations. He left Tennessee for a similar job at Nebraska in 1994, then was hired as Pittsburgh's AD in 1996. He was hired as Nebraska's AD in December of 2002.

Both teams are among the top-10 winningest programs of all-time. Nebraska trails only Michigan, Notre Dame and Texas with 801 victories. Tennessee is No. 8 with 752.