Tenn-Bama game day help and advice (merged)

#26
#26
The drive to Pigeon Forge should not be bad but being a weekend game weekend or not the traffic will start in Sevierville and be horrible all the way thru pigeon forge to the other side of Gatlinburg lol nothin you cant get thru its a normal thing with all the turism and red lights down that way lol... Good place to eat pregame on sat. for lunch or what not would be Krystal on the strip lol yes I do mean the fast food chain, its quick and prolly the best fast food... Since Knoxville to Nashville will be around a 3 to 4 hour drive any how I agree with Eloist leave early! Traffic shouldnt be to bad at all(Unless you hit a wreck) until you get near downtown Nashville

With normal traffic, it usually takes me between 2 1/2 and 3 hours to go from Knoxville to Nashville.
 
#27
#27
wow! thanks so much fellas. there is a lot of great info here for us to make our decisions using. i really appreciate it.

bigorange, i appreciate the offer, i may shoot you a pm as we get closer to time.

elo, tailgating is not going to be at a premium for us for the titans game. i think recovering from saturday night will be much higher on the list. i am thinking if we leave by 8, we should be at the stadium by 1030ish which is plenty of time for me. for the most part, we just want to go see and support vince and seeing the 'hometown' team is a bonus...though none of us are die-hard texans fans.

sounds like copper cellar is a must and like calhoun's will put us in prime position for some vol navy action. i like what i'm hearing regarding the game environment. i'll be curious to see how it compares to some of my past experiences at kyle field, lsu, the 2006 rose bowl, nebraska, all the texas-ou games... i figure if you guys take care of ucla in the opener, there should be no shortage of hype and excitement for florida.

anyway, thanks again for all the helpful advice and please, by all means, keep it comin'...
Think earlier... Neyland will be rockin bro your gonna love it! I always do!
 
#28
#28
With normal traffic, it usually takes me between 2 1/2 and 3 hours to go from Knoxville to Nashville.
Yeah your prolly right but I said 3 to 4 for any unexpected traffic... I just wouldnt leave it to chance
 
#30
#30
Good place to eat pregame on sat. for lunch or what not would be Krystal on the strip lol yes I do mean the fast food chain, its quick and prolly the best fast food...
Krystal on the strip!!! :rock::rock::rock:
 
#32
#32
Make sure you get into the stadium early enough to see the band do its thing. It's hard to beat when they form the power T and march up and down the field followed by the team running through the T. Just thinking about itI'm getting the chills .
 
#33
#33
awesome! thanks for the advice guys, this is great! exactly what i'm looking for...

keep it comin'!

eloist, what time would you say we need to leave on sunday? i'm slightly concerned about that given that saturday night will not be an early night.

one other thing, how is the drive between knox and pigeon forge on game fridays? i don't want that excursion to take up too much time on friday...

If you are coming from Knox I recommend 441 on Friday. Either way if you get to Pigeon Forge in the afternoon you will be in traffic for a while.
 
#34
#34
It's been a while since I've been there but why on earth is Pigeon Forge on the agenda?

If it's mountains you want, skip the Forge and go up through Townsend.
 
#36
#36
It's been a while since I've been there but why on earth is Pigeon Forge on the agenda?

If it's mountains you want, skip the Forge and go up through Townsend.
agreed completely, as my post suggests.

I would drive 250 miles out of my way to avoid that hole.
 
#38
#38
The rock, what G-town was referring to in post #2, is located on the corner of Volunteer Blvd and Pat Head Summit St. (very close to Stokely Athletics Center and the Music Building). There are always a ton of tailgates set up around this area if you wanted to make some friends with some of these groups. Personally, I would definitely recommend trying to make some friends with the VolNavy instead. Tailgating on the Tennessee River is one of the coolest gameday traditions that we have in my opinion.

Be sure to see Salute to the Hill, which occurs on the corner of Phillip Fulmer Way and Andy Holt Avenue right outside the stadium at the bottom of the "The Hill". And like others have said, BE SURE to be in your seat by the time the Pregame show starts to see the Vols run through the T!

Restaurants: Calhouns is a great setting being on the River and food is pretty good. Several restaurants in Market Square in downtown that you could chose from. Downtown Grill and Brewery is always a personal favorite. Also, if you are near the Cumberland "Strip" and your in the mood for a burger or a sub, check out Gus's Good Time's Deli! Great stuff. ( It is actually on Melrose Pl. right off of Cumberland Ave)

Bars after the game: After games, the Strip (Cumberland Ave) is always slammed pack with drunk college girls. You have several choices, just walk around and chose. I don't know too much about bars in downtown, but I do know there are multiple bars in the Old City, which is about a mile walk from the Stadium.

I would recommend maybe parking in a garage downtown so you can leave your options open between things on campus and downtown/the old city. Hope you have a great trip! I know you won't be disappointed! GO VOLS!
 
#40
#40
elo, tailgating is not going to be at a premium for us for the titans game. i think recovering from saturday night will be much higher on the list. i am thinking if we leave by 8, we should be at the stadium by 1030ish which is plenty of time for me. for the most part, we just want to go see and support vince and seeing the 'hometown' team is a bonus...though none of us are die-hard texans fans.


awesome.

i suggest you park on 1st avenue in downtown and then use the pedestrian bridge to walk over the river to the titans stadium.

Go titans.
 
#41
#41
oh my oh my where to begin!

First of all on Friday, make sure you take 441 from downtown Knoxville to pigeon forge and on the way back, as I40 is closed and I am sure the traffic coming that way on friday will be awful.

Friday night I reccomend staying close to your hotel and either hitting up Chesapeakes (seafood/steaks) or Butcher shop (in world's fair park), then hoofing it up to Gay street and grabbin some real good brews and probably some live music at Downtown Grill and Brewery if you feel like getting into more of the typical bar scene head down to the old city to Barley's or Hannah's.

Saturday pre game....I would head down early to Calhoun's (10AMish) maybe grab some lunch...while you wait for your table they have outdoor bars by the water, right at the foot of the stadium. This is where the vol navy is and has the best view on gameday.
-if you are wanting to do more of the campus pre game routine head towards the rock like some have said, I just graduated from UT the rock is right at fraternity park which makes it really really fun tons of hot girls around, but if you are looking more of a non college pregame I would head to the calhouns area...

I wish this were a night game so you would have more time to pregame and see all the traditional pregame routines...depending on whats more important to you (seeing the traditions or just having a good time) The vol walk is usuallly about 3 hours before kickoff I believe so if this is 330 kickoff I would recommend skipping it. The band comes into the stadium about an hour and a half before kickoff, so this would be about 2ish...i would reccomending being there for that, then posting up with a tailgate outside the stadium till about 3 then heading to your seats.

After the game I would advise going to the strip that night...definately a blast...
My favorites are, Cool beans, Hannah's, Half Barrel, OCI, Roaming nombe(nothings changed at Charlie peppers but the name) and usually a fraternity will have a big open band party at New amsterdam after the game...guaranteed good time...

I will be in town again from SC for the FL game and am extremely Pumped...Hope yall have a blast!

GO VOLS!!
 
#42
#42
Idk if anybody has said this yet, too lazy to read all the posts, but friday night or whenever really you have to go to the Chop House off of Broadway. Good God I love those steaks.
 
#43
#43
Best advice in the entire thread.

Definitely.

Pigeon

Forge

SUCKS.

Get your zorb on Friday night, then get the hell out of there. You should stay in Knoxville Friday; it is only about a 40 min. drive on a Friday night. WAY easier than trying to come into town on Saturday morning.
 
#44
#44
Make sure to contact me close to that time, whether by PM or whatnot. I can give you all the info for the Band's schedule, which you'll want to see. Plus, I'll have exact times, and they really are exact...Believe me.
You will want to see the Vol Walk, which is about 3-4 hours before the game.
After that, you'll want to walk across the staff lot by Phil Fulmer Way to catch the March to the Stadium as well as the tradition of the Salute to the Hill.
Then, you'll want to make your way into the stadium at some point, as long as you're in your seats by about 30 minutes before kickoff.
You'll get to see the most photographed moments in college football...! The Running through the T and the Power T!!
I swear I hope that game's at 8pm. Pregame under the lights is unbeatable.
 
#45
#45
Oh yeah, and don't waste your time with East Tennessee BBQ.
If you want pork BBQ, go to Memphis.
If you want beef BBQ, go back to Texas.

You won't find any good kind of BBQ in East Tennessee.

Go to Copper Cellar/Cumberland Grill for a good burger (same place...don't ask)
Go to O(ld)C(ollege)I(nn) for a good ole time.
Go to the strip for your bar scene...You'll know where to go. Follow the short skirts and orange dresses.

Underage club/bar: Bar Knoxville
Frat club/bar: Tap Room

Watch out for Carousel...Gay bar

A good place to go for a nice casual bar/grill is Rays ESG. 21 and up, and they do check. It's at the West Town exit on the north side of Kingston Pike (the main drag in west Knoxville).

I highly suggest going to Rays, cause it's just a nice place overall to get some good food when you want to calm down and watch a billion tv's at the same time.
 
#48
#48
i like yall's idea and what your doing. one question. why did you save the best for last?

ive only been to the 06 bama game and this years orange and white game so i'm little help with the other things you asked of. bookstore was neat. lol.

dont freak out when neyland goes to rockin and your testiculars go to rattlin in your drawyers. i recommend some water or coke from concession stand early. good chance you'll be hoarse by the end of the first quarter. if your sitting on visitor side you wont have to worry about afternoon sun either.

all i can say is enjoy the beautiful fall afternoon in ktown and live it up its an experience of a lifetime as far as I'm concerned. Lucky for you your going to our biggest game.

have fun and be careful!

ABSOLUTELY SIT ON VISITOR SIDE. THE SUN IS BRUTAL LATE AFTERNOON!!!!!:rock:
 
#49
#49
I believe you will not find a more rivaled college football game! Especialy on years where teams are pretty evenly matched. I went a few yrs back w/ the famous UT field goal @ the last moment win! I could not hear right for 4 days. It was amazing! The place erupted. Was my favorite moment at any sporting event!
welcome to Neyland Baby!
 
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