Tennessee trying to recover advantage in Neyland Stadium

Posted 6:03PM on Monday 28th August 2006 ( 18 years ago )

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The fans are screaming and the upper deck starts to shake with people stomping their feet as if the noise will be enough to block the opponent from the end zone. This can happen at the University of Tennessee's Neyland Stadium, one of the largest in college football with attendance for some games topping 108,000 big enough for a mid-size city. The Volunteers have won nearly 80 percent of games played on their home field, but in recent years the mystique has worn off. Tennessee is 0-6 against top 10 teams at home since 2000, but the No. 23 Vols are hoping to reclaim their home-field advantage when they host ninth-ranked California in their opener Saturday. ``At one time we had the longest winning streak at home in the Southeastern Conference,'' coach Phillip Fulmer said. ``Y'all want to talk about recent history. Let's talk about history. We've been a good home team. Last couple of years haven't been exactly what we've wanted certainly.'' The Vols won 23 straight games in Neyland Stadium from the fourth game of the 1996 season through the first home game of 2000, one of the best stretches in Tennessee football history that included the undefeated and national championship season in 1998. Neyland Stadium is the third-largest stadium behind Michigan Stadium and Penn State's Beaver Stadium. Ongoing renovations of the stadium have reduced the capacity of 104,079 to a little over 102,000. The attendance record is 109,061 for the 2004 Florida game. Since becoming head coach, Fulmer is 39-27 against top 25 teams overall and 5-9 against top 10 teams at home. The record includes a win over Florida in the 1992 when Fulmer was interim coach. He was promoted to head coach at the end of the season. Tennessee's last win over a top 10 team was in 1999. The Vols were ranked sixth and beat then-No. 10 Georgia 37-20. After last year's 5-6 season, much is riding on Tennessee's opener against the Golden Bears, who want to use the game to kick off their effort for a BCS berth. The Vols want to show last season was an aberration while some fans worry it signals the program is in decline. ``We need to defend our stadium. We need to defend our field. That's been brought up and pointed out. It's something we've definitely talked about a lot,'' Fulmer said. ``Our crowd has to crank it up. We have to give them a good reason to cheer, but they've got to be on their feet. That needs to be a real plus for us.'' Cal is opening on the road against a ranked team for the first time since 1979 when the Bears beat 18th-ranked Arizona State. The excitement is high among fans this preseason in hopes Cal can challenge Southern California for the Pac-10 championship. Cal coach Jeff Tedford has been piping in noise during practices to prepare for the crowd and has sprayed water on the field to simulate higher humidity. The Bears played in Knoxville in 1977 and 1987, winning the first game that was an opener and losing the second. ``It's not the first time we've played in big stadiums or with crowds,'' Tedford said. ``I don't know if that is going to be a big factor. ... Obviously for us to be successful in this game we'll have to execute.'' Most of the top 10 teams that have won in Knoxville during Fulmer's tenure were from the SEC. Annual nemesis Florida has been ranked 10th or higher six times its played in Knoxville since 1992, winning four times. The only non-conference top 10 team Tennessee has hosted during that time was Miami in 2002 when the Hurricanes were ranked No. 1. They beat the Vols 26-3 and went on to lose in the national title game to Ohio State. ``We've played really really good teams,'' Tennessee offensive guard David Ligon said. ``I don't think that has anything to do with the fans or the stadium or anything like that. It's just our play and making mistakes and beating ourselves.'' On the Net: California football: http://www.calbears.com Tennessee football: http://www.utsports.com (Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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