Same with Tennessee over Alabama and Florida State at Clemson. But when you go into a place where they are so emotionally charged, you have to go in and make an immediate statement. If you let the home team hang around, you could be in trouble. If you're Tennessee, you want to get up 14-0 right off the bat and put them away after that. It's all about mindset.
Some teams go in expecting to win, and some go in hoping to keep it close.
Tennessee-Alabama is going to be one of the best atmospheres in college football recent memory, what with the momentum of Mike DuBose going from almost being fired to possibly the SEC coach of the year, and Shaun Alexander looking to make a statement in the Heisman race, not to mention the Vols are defending national champs. There is a lot of talk about Penn State's weaknesses, and there are some. Chicago Well he's certainly not playing close to the vest offensively, running those reverses to Chafie Fields and what not. I talked to Jerry Sandusky this week, and I don't think it's a case of playing close to the vest defensively, either. Frankly, they're disappointed in the way the defense has played the first half of the year.