Ex-Tennessee QB Erik Ainge says atmosphere at Georgia games is 'overrated'
Ainge said he wasn't intimidated by the atmosphere at Georgia
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When No. 1 Tennessee travels to Athens for a highly anticipated matchup against No. 3 Georgia, it will be met with a hostile environment in Sanford Stadium on Saturday afternoon. While most assume crowd noise will be a major factor between the hedges, one former Volunteers quarterback says playing in Athens is not all that daunting.
Former Tennessee quarterback and current WNML radio host Erik Ainge played four seasons for the Volunteers, and he played in Sanford Stadium on two separate occasions. From his experience, Ainge said playing in Sanford Stadium isn't as bad as most expect it would be.
Playing between the hedges is overrated. Not that loud and definitely not intimidating. It’s nothing like playing in Neyland. Vols will be just fine in Athens!
— Erik Ainge (@ErikAinge3) November 1, 2022
Ja'Wuan James, a former Tennessee offensive lineman, agreed with Ainge. James tweeted that Georgia has "fair weather" fans who are quick to turn on the team when things go awry.
copy that. fair weather quick to booo the home team if stuff isn’t going well https://t.co/VZpIah2uib
— Ja'Wuan James (@JawuanJames70) November 2, 2022
Ainge does have experience playing big games between the hedges. In 2006, Ainge led No. 13 Tennessee down to Athens for a matchup with No. 10 Georgia. Ainge threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns as the Volunteers came from behind to beat the Bulldogs, 51-33.
In a matchup of SEC East rivals that will likely decide which team wins the division and goes to the conference championship game, Tennessee and Georgia kick off from Sanford Stadium at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday afternoon. That game will air on CBS, and it can be streamed live on CBSSports.com and the CBS Sports app.
