Last Saturday, Tennessee football played inside Neyland Stadium for the third time this season.

However, the atmosphere was far and above the other two games due to an SEC opponent in South Carolina coming to Knoxville.

With the players wearing black jerseys and fans anxious for revenge over the Gamecocks, Neyland Stadium was rocking all night in the Vols' 41-20 win.

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While newcomers to the program got a taste of a sold-out Neyland Stadium in matches against Austin Peay and UTSA, an SEC matchup at night is a different beast.

The atmosphere clearly left a lasting impression on these transfers and freshmen.

Coming from Miami, John Campbell Jr. has played on big stages before in his career. However, while with the Hurricanes, the home crowds paled in comparison to Tennessee.

Last season, Miami drew an average of just 54,964 fans per game. The year before was only 43,698, as well.

In comparison, the Vols hosted an average of 100,532 fans during the 2022 campaign.

"Like, I ain't going to lie, the stadium, the fans, I don't know," said Campbell. "It just felt like I was on that prime time stage. It was lit. It was crazy just seeing all the people out there. It was deep, loud. Crowd really brought that juice. It was sold out before but they really brought that juice at night. It was great. It was electrifying. It was crazy for me. I ain't never really had no fans before like that. It was just great seeing a sold out, packed out crowd that's into it. Juiced up and just rooting up. It was crazy for me, for real."

As a freshman, Arion Carter has quickly had to get used to playing in front of large crowds. He appeared in front of big crowds for the first four games of the year, but that doesn't compare to last Saturday.

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For him, the moment he'll remember came when running through the T.

With the band opening up, the crowd roaring, the light system shining the path and fireworks exploding in the air, it makes for a scene as good as you'll find in college football.

"For me, it was running through the T," said Carter. "That night game, just seeing the fireworks and all the people cheering. Running through that T, it's nothing like it. It's a once-in -a-lifetime opportunity. That was a big eye-opener for me playing in Neyland."

Next, Tennessee will return to Neyland Stadium to face Texas A&M. A similar atmosphere should be in effect as the Vols are slated to begin the game at 3:30 p.m. ET against a formable opponent.

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