Neyland Stadium, Photo by Matthew Pentz.

The first question the group of Ohio fans encountered after making the journey south of the Mason-Dixon Line wasn’t “How do you think your offense will perform against an elite defense?”  Nor was it “Do you think Frank Solich’s past at Nebraska helped him better prepare the team for a game in a hostile environment?”  In reality, the question asked over and over to the traveling Bobcats fans was “Where is Athens, Ohio?”

It is never a good sign when your team is a 23-point underdog on the road against one of the traditional powers of college football, but it’s an even worse sign when no one can even locate your school on the map.  Welcome to SEC country.  A surprising trait about the Tennessee fans was their friendliness – the stereotypical Southern Gentlemen and Belles came to mind. Before and after the game, it really seemed like they wanted the Bobcat fans to feel welcome.  During the game, however, any questioning of the Volunteers or calls that went in their favor was about as dangerous as asking “Who won the Civil War?”

While walking into Neyland Stadium, the first thing to notice is the vastness.  I’ve been to a few 100,000 plus stadiums before, but this is the first one I’ve seen that is completely enclosed, instead of having open ends or sections.  The seats rise up from the field level, seemingly straight up, and even the nosebleed seats seem close to the field, albeit at terrifying angles. The odd sensation makes one feel as though it would be possible to jump from the top row right onto the field.  By kickoff, the stadium was 90 percent orange and the “Pride of the Southland” band had the Vols fans ready to pounce on their smaller conference foes.  Against these odds, the chances of the Bobcats emerging from Knoxville with a win looked pretty slim, especially after a quick opening drive gave the Volunteers a 7-point advantage.

Undaunted, Chris Garrett took back an electrifying kickoff return the length of the field faster than the crowd could sing the chorus of “Rocky Top.”  For those who don’t know what “Rocky Top” is, it is the Tennessee fight song that the fans break out at any opportunity, be it a touchdown or a mere 5-yard gain.  When the momentum is really going, however, it can feel like sitting in the middle of a deafening orange cauldron, with the stadium seating going straight up all around and the Vols fans singing at full volume.  Doubts still lingered in the minds of the Bobcat fans even after that exciting play, but they were erased after Theo Scott found LaVon Brazill in the back of the end zone to give the Bobcats a 14-7 lead.  College football nation was on upset alert.

Scott gave Tennessee one back at the end of the half, though, after he was pressured into an errant screen pass thrown right to the defensive end, putting the Vols back up by 7 at the half.  It was a wonder that the singing of “Rocky Top” wasn’t heard all the way back in Athens.  During the break, the Marching 110 received a standing ovation from the home crowd, and there seemed to be a sense of surprise in the crowd that the “Yankees” knew how to put on a football show of their own.

The Bobcats fought to stay in the game in the second half, and they looked to have been rewarded when a Jonathon Crompton fumble was returned 50 yards to cut the Tennessee lead to 5.  Seemingly back from the dead, the thousand or so traveling fans were louder than the 80,000 home ones.  But just as quickly as it happened, it was taken away.  The call was reviewed and overturned, just like the momentum.

Ohio managed to stay within striking distance the rest of the way, but after Scott’s pass went begging with 40 seconds to play, the Volunteer victory was sealed.  Walking out of Neyland Stadium, the main comment coming from the football disciples of the South was “That was a great game your team played tonight.”  Moral victories mean little when sitting at .500, but if OU shows the same resiliency throughout the MAC schedule, seeing the Bobcats out of bowl contention at the end of the year would be as shocking as the UT fans looked when they went down 14 to 7.

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