COLUMBUS, Ohio — As far as “Tennessee Takeovers” go, there may never be another setting to match the Louisiana Superdome following the 1985 season, when Volunteers fans comprised roughly 95% of the audience as their Southeastern Conference championship team mauled Miami 35-7 in the Sugar Bowl.
Yet what transpired Saturday night inside Ohio Stadium will be forever remembered as well.
Tennessee was allotted only 3,500 tickets for the College Football Playoff first-round matchup between the ninth-seeded Vols and eighth-seeded Ohio State, but the visiting orange was beyond plentiful for the 8 p.m. kickoff. Roughly 35,000 Tennessee fans descended into the famed 102,780-seat facility known as “The Horseshoe,” with Ohio State media relations director Jerry Emig calling it easily the largest contingent from an opposing fan base he had witnessed during his 22 years at the school.
Word of Tennessee fans gobbling up tickets to the CFP showdown began last weekend, and Vols fourth-year coach Josh Heupel was asked in Monday’s news conference if he was surprised by those reports.
“Not with this fan base,” Heupel said. “It’s a nice, short drive up there. Christmas is right around the corner. It’s a great Christmas present.”