The Atmosphere of Neyland Stadium.

#1
MrOrange

MrOrange

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#1
I love Neyland Stadium on a football Saturday. There's no place I'd rather be. But in my many ayear attending games I've noticed a growing... let's say issue. It seems to me that our fans have become very reactive towards the action on the field, and aren't nearly as proactive as some of the other home crowds around the country. I don't remember it always being this way, but it's like, especially since 1998, we wait for the team to give us something to cheer about before we ever get loud. We may be loud as the team runs through the T and then maybe the FIRST time the defense takes to field, but then it takes a dire situation or an amazing offensive play to get a big reaction. Not to mention if things aren't going our way. Fans tend to start sitting on their hands and just watching if we get behind and a couple drives stall. Thats all well and good, if that's they way you want to watch a game, more power to you. But in Neyland Stadium, we have one of the biggest home field advantage tools in the country and, as fans, I just don't think we use nearly as effectively as we should. I will say that some of the home performances we've seen lately have a tendacy to take the spirit right out of you because it's been just plain ugly. I've experienced it myself. But sometimes when Im doing my part and getting loud and rowdy when the defense is on the field or whatever, I feel completely out of place because the rest of my section is just sitting there reading sky banners or something.

I personally have several ideas why this is, but I wanna know what everybody else thinks... am I way off?

My main theory is that since '98, we won't be satisfied with anything except 100% perfection. Undefeated seasons, complete blow out victories, etc...

While these are great things, we just can't have them all the time. and up until '98, we had gone 47 years without perfection. BUT you can't just be a vol fan when the times are great. right?

Anyway, Things won't change for me. I may not always be a fan of coaching decisions or individual players, but Im a Vol fan 100% of the time. And I promise, just like hundreds of other times, I'll be leaving Neyland Stadium on Saturday completely hoarse, regardless of the outcome.

GO VOLS! :rock:
 
#2
#2
I think we were basically spoiled by the '98 season and the seasons that we had Peyton. Now we just expect to win and we only make a lot of noise away from the stadium when we don't win.

Not to mention that last year, it's hard to get too excited when you're having a 5-6 season. The cheering turns into gasping...
 
#5
#5
But what happens if things start out rocky? We will be quick to give up, knowing how bad last year was?
 
#6
#6
If the game turns into a rout of the Vols I wouldn't expect to hear much from the BON. I know that this is the last thing anyone wants to think about here at the outset of the season, but there is a reasonable chance that Cal will not only win but beat the living he!! out of the Vols. Tedford is looking for a second signature win and I seriously doubt he will call off the dogs if the Vols don't show up to play some hard nosed football.

I do agree with you about the volume factor but I have no idea how to solve it.
 
#8
#8
VolunteerHillbilly said:
If the game turns into a rout of the Vols I wouldn't expect to hear much from the BON. I know that this is the last thing anyone wants to think about here at the outset of the season, but there is a reasonable chance that Cal will not only win but beat the living he!! out of the Vols. Tedford is looking for a second signature win and I seriously doubt he will call off the dogs if the Vols don't show up to play some hard nosed football.

I do agree with you about the volume factor but I have no idea how to solve it.
Click to expand...

I don't think for a second that there is a resonable chance that we get the hell beat out of us. Could we lose the game? Yes. But there is no way we get blown out. I will go so far as to say that if there is a blow out I feel very confident that it will be the other way around.
When was the last time you saw UT blown out of a game? I understand your negative by nature (according to post of yours I've read) but we don't get blown out.
 
#9
#9
I would love it if the stadium is really rockin' during the pregame march by TPOTSMB. I mean when TPOTSMB forms the power T and the whole stadium screams V...O....L....S GO VOLS GO! and the CAL players are in the locker room thinking O'Sh*t this place is loud.:rock:
 
#14
#14
MrOrange said:
I love Neyland Stadium on a football Saturday. There's no place I'd rather be. But in my many ayear attending games I've noticed a growing... let's say issue. It seems to me that our fans have become very reactive towards the action on the field, and aren't nearly as proactive as some of the other home crowds around the country. I don't remember it always being this way, but it's like, especially since 1998, we wait for the team to give us something to cheer about before we ever get loud. We may be loud as the team runs through the T and then maybe the FIRST time the defense takes to field, but then it takes a dire situation or an amazing offensive play to get a big reaction. Not to mention if things aren't going our way. Fans tend to start sitting on their hands and just watching if we get behind and a couple drives stall. Thats all well and good, if that's they way you want to watch a game, more power to you. But in Neyland Stadium, we have one of the biggest home field advantage tools in the country and, as fans, I just don't think we use nearly as effectively as we should. I will say that some of the home performances we've seen lately have a tendacy to take the spirit right out of you because it's been just plain ugly. I've experienced it myself. But sometimes when Im doing my part and getting loud and rowdy when the defense is on the field or whatever, I feel completely out of place because the rest of my section is just sitting there reading sky banners or something.

I personally have several ideas why this is, but I wanna know what everybody else thinks... am I way off?

My main theory is that since '98, we won't be satisfied with anything except 100% perfection. Undefeated seasons, complete blow out victories, etc...

While these are great things, we just can't have them all the time. and up until '98, we had gone 47 years without perfection. BUT you can't just be a vol fan when the times are great. right?

Anyway, Things won't change for me. I may not always be a fan of coaching decisions or individual players, but Im a Vol fan 100% of the time. And I promise, just like hundreds of other times, I'll be leaving Neyland Stadium on Saturday completely hoarse, regardless of the outcome.

GO VOLS! :rock:
Click to expand...
I know exactly what you mean sometimes you just want to grab people and get in their face and say if you can't get up and make some ******* noise on 3rd and long what the he** are you even doing here. and hearing people around you saying well lets go so we can beat traffic, regardless of the score at the start of the 4th quarter, it's like you want to tell them beat the traffic all together and give the tickets to someone who really cares about their team. I know that not everyone is as enthusiastic fans as we here are but come on.
 
#15
#15
heard that. Im the guy making noise on 1st, 2nd, 3rd, I don't even care. and man do I get some looks sometimes. It's like, you're at a freaking sporting event people! Not church! Im not here to just sing Rocky Top with the choir! but I do that too. HAHA I can't wait til those gates open Saturday!
 
#16
#16
Do they still do the "Sick em Smokie" on the kick offs? I loved that, but it seems like the last game I was at, they didn't do it.

I also liked it when John Henderson was there and they played "Big John" every time he made a tackle.

Can't wait till Saturday!! Go Vols!!
 
#17
#17
No they stopped that sick em smokey and the howling a couple years ago. I'll admit, I kinda liked it too. I think we're in the minority though.
 
#18
#18
Wish I could be there. It should be the people who aren't yelling at the top of their lungs that are getting the dirty looks not vice versa.
 
#19
#19
MrOrange said:
No they stopped that sick em smokey and the howling a couple years ago. I'll admit, I kinda liked it too. I think we're in the minority though.
Click to expand...

I thought it was stupid and fun. Now the reading of Neyland's maxims was a different story...
 
#20
#20
utvolpj said:
I thought it was stupid and fun. Now the reading of Neyland's maxims was a different story...
Click to expand...

You mean when they'd have a former player come on the field and read them? I didn't like that so much. A little too cheesy.
 
#22
#22
Just like when they used to run the cheerleaders out armed with a mic during pregame. That was just annoying even for cheerleaders.
 
#25
#25
I wish there was some way the fans could have some kind of countdown chant to do our part to help psyche out the visiting team. Espcailly a visiting team like Cal. Sure the Vols running thru the T is a very strong introduction, there just needs to be something else in the last minute before kickoff. Something that would bridge the gap between the Team running out and the kickoff.
 
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