Tennessee football has long been known for one of the best home-field advantages in college football. Whether it be against non-conference opponents or SEC rivals, Vol Nation is relentless when it comes to bringing noise, energy, and rattling opponents.
We've seen this a lot over the past few years, especially. Josh Heupel has brought new energy to the stadium on Saturdays, and it has resulted in opposing quarterbacks, centers, and coaches getting rattled during the game, causing mistakes.
Despite Tennessee fans' success at forcing mistakes on the opposition, Neyland Stadium didn't land anywhere in the top ten in EA Sports' Toughest Places to Play rankings for its upcoming College Football 26 video game.
Neyland landed at No. 12 in the rankings, marking one of several mistakes EA Sports made in the rankings.
CBS Sports personality Josh Pate took offense to this ranking personally. The Columbus, Georgia, native travels the country during the Fall, visiting the top stadiums in college football, and has been to Neyland Stadium multiple times.
He went on his show, "Josh Pate's College Football Show," to address the rankings at the top of his show this past week. He called the rankings a "crime against humanity" and immediately explained why the rankings were wrong, spending some time focusing on why Neyland's ranking was incorrect.
"I've never been in an avalanche before, but I would imagine Tennessee taking the lead on you in the fourth quarter and Rocky Top blaring; that's what an avalanche of orange feels like," Pate said about Neyland Stadium.
He followed that up with a ranking of his own. As someone who has visited most, if not all, of these stadiums, he should have a good idea of how each interacts with and changes the game in some of the biggest environments in college football.
As future CFB Commissioner it is imperative I release these facts annually pic.twitter.com/2ILHeRvFOK
— Josh Pate (@JoshPateCFB) June 27, 2025
Neyland Stadium tops the list at No. 1, followed by LSU, Penn State, Oregon, and Florida to round out the top five. Washington, Auburn, Alabama, Clemson, and Ohio State finish the top ten, with Texas A&M and Georgia making the top 12.
Even though EA Sports' ranking is for a video game, Pate wanted to make it clear that the ranking is incorrect and that Neyland Stadium and Vols fans should receive the respect they deserve.