MTSU football to wear jersey patch in honor of legendary entertainer Dolly Parton

The MTSU football team is the latest to pay tribute to Dolly Parton, who died on Aug. 25.

The Blue Raiders will wear a special patch on their jerseys in her honor on Sept. 5 when they open their 2026 home season against Murray State, the school announced on Aug. 28. The patch, which is white and features her signature below her lifespan, 1946-2026.

Parton was the “Queen of Country Music,” with a career spanning over 60 years. She was a legend in the music industry, known for hits-turned-classics such as “Jolene,” “I Will Always Love You,” “9 to 5” and “Coat of Many Colors.”

Parton released 49 solo studio albums and earned 25 No. 1 hits on the Billboard’s U.S. Hot Country Songs chart, the most of any female country artist. Her first album “Hello, I’m Dolly,” was released in 1967. “Rockstar,” her latest album, was released in 2023 and went No. 1.

Athletic director Chris Massaro and dean of the school's college of media and entertainment Beverly Keel revealed the design at the Center for Popular Music. The center includes some Parton artifacts.

"Coach Derek Masonand I were talking about how we can honor one of the great Tennesseans and one of the greatest people in the world," Massaro said. "The football team is honored to wear this for our home opener."

Massaro added the first of the jerseys worn during the game will be donated to the center.

The date of the game, 9-5, also happens to coincide with one of Parton's most famous songs, "9 to 5."

Paul Skrbina is a sports enterprise reporter covering the Predators, Titans, Nashville SC, local colleges and local sports for The Tennessean. Reach him at pskrbina@tennessean.com and on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter) @paulskrbina.

This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: MTSU football to wear jersey patch in honor of legendary entertainer Dolly Parton