Tennessee has made the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history after a 10-2 year and finishing third in the SEC. The Vols survived the ruthless SEC schedule this year to punch its ticket into the national title tournament and are playing with house money.
I say that because all of the pressure is on Ohio State and head coach Ryan Day. The last time they were in Ohio Stadium, they suffered one of the worst losses this century, a 13-10 loss to unranked Michigan.
Despite the loss, the Buckeyes are in the College Football Playoff, but no coach's seat is hotter than Day's right now. This very well could be Day's last game as the Buckeyes' head coach, but it could also be the beginning of their run to the national championship.
On the other hand, Tennessee's Josh Heupel and redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava are in their first CFP with the odds stacked against them. They're the underdogs, and they're not being given a chance to win. Ohio State is a touchdown favorite in a game that, based on how both teams have played, looks like it could be a coin flip on paper.
To add more fuel to the fire, Tennessee fans are expected to join the Vols in Columbus by the thousands. Tennessee is predicted to have upwards of 30% of the stadium in orange, which gives Tennessee another advantage if Ohio Stadium is at least 30% orange.
Sure, the game determines the end of the season for one team. Tennessee's win in this game could take the program from a College Football Playoff contender to a national championship contender, but Ohio State and Ryan Day have all the pressure on them.
They have more stars on their roster, a "better" coach, and home-field advantage. If Tennessee upsets Ohio State, it will shock the thousands of fans, media, and talking heads who wrote them off two weeks ago.
It's Tennessee's game to lose and Ohio State's to win. The cold weather could fall into Tennessee's favor since its run game is considerably better than OSU's.
The Vols and Buckeyes kick off at 8:00 PM ET on ESPN and ABC. On Saturday night, they will be the main event of the CFP first round, with all eyes on Columbus.