Some Tennessee baseball fans showed up to Lindsey Nelson Stadium for Game 1 of the Knoxville Super Regional against Notre Dame wearing T-shirts that read “Classless vs. Catholics”. 

It’s a play on the infamous “Catholics vs. Convicts” mantra that originated in the Notre Dame-Miami football rivalry of the 1980s. It’s also a sign that Vols fans have embraced the “classless” label the fans have been given on social media by opposing fanbases, mostly within the SEC.

The term was used most recently when a clip of Vols right-fielder Jordan Beck's one-finger salute in the regional final win over Georgia Tech went viral on Twitter. It was also heavily used when Tennessee football fans delayed a game against Ole Miss by launching trash on the field, including a full bottle of mustard.

The best-of-3 series starts Friday at 6 p.m. ET and continues Saturday at 2 p.m. ET. The Vols (56-7) are heavily favored to advance to their second consecutive College World Series. The Fighting Irish (38-14) are looking for their first trip to Omaha since 2002. 

Tennessee coach Tony Vitello named Blake Tidwell the starter for the opening game, and he will go up against Notre Dame's Andrew Temple.

Alberto Camargo is a sports intern with the Knoxville-News Sentinel. Contact him at acamargo@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @albaretoe.