BREAKING: State Track Meets Move To Knoxville In Spring 2026

Ben Thompson


Tom Black Track

Since 2006, the TSSAA State Track and Field Championships have been contested at MTSU but next year the competition will move, along with other sports, to the University Of Tennessee's Campus at Knoxville in an effort to separate Spring Fling competitions outside of a singular city. The TMSAA State Track and Field Championship will also break from Austin Peay as well starting in 2026 and 2027. Here are the projected dates from the TSSAA Board Of Control Minutes: 

Dates within each week subject to change after negotiations with the host sites.
Sport - City - Proposed Days - Proposed Dates - Venue
MS Track & Field - Knoxville - Mon - May 18, 2026; May 24, 2027 - Tom Black Track
 HS Track & Field - Knoxville - Tue-Thu - May 19-21, 2026; May 25-27, 2027 - Tom Black Track

This deviates slightly from the current schedule. Middle School will now compete on Monday rather than the Saturday before and the high school will follow up behind them on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday making for a straight four days of competition. 

Notes about Tom Black Track: 

  • The facility is track specific and serves no other purpose than track and field. 
  • The stadium runs East and West and there is timing infrastructure to time in both directions. MTSU runs North and South. 
  • There are multiple horizontal pits that run East and West on the interior and run parallel with the track that are able to be contested in both directions. 
  • There are two shot put pits. There is a singular discus cage. 
  • The pole vault pit is on the interior of the track as well on the north side.
  • There is an adjacent recreational field that I assume will be leveraged for athletes warm up and staging in the same manner as MTSU. 
  • There is stadium seating on both sides. 

Currently this facility hosts two high school competitions a year on average. The Volunteer Track Classic and the Class AA East Regional. 

Here are some links from these meets from various competition areas in the facility if you'd like more visuals from it: 

High Jump | Discus | Track Races

As more information is made available we will be sure to share that at that time.