This article makes it sound like he does.
AU FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK: Noise promises to be an issue in 1st road game
Cliff Williams | Opelika-Auburn News
Auburn’s Gus Malzahn and his offense will have to overcome the communication problems that come with playing at Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium in front of 100,000-plus opposing fans.
By Andrew Gribble | Auburn University Beat Reporter
Published: September 28, 2009
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More than 100,000 people will be trying to make the atmosphere absolutely miserable, the snap count might have to go silent and hand signals will likely be used as the primary form of communication.
To Auburn’s players, though, the only real difference Saturday at Tennessee will be the white uniforms they’re wearing.
“It’s something that most of us have been there and done that before,” tailback Ben Tate said. “It shouldn’t be too big of a deal.”
Only one player — Onterio McCalebb — has played a game at Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium — the biggest in the South and third-largest in the nation when it comes to capacity.
The attendance is expected to teeter anywhere from 100,000-107,000 for Saturday’s primetime showdown between Auburn and
Tennessee, yet Tiger players were quick to shrug off the hype as if the game were being played on the Auburn practice fields.
“It’s pretty easy with the signals and everything,” offensive guard Mike Berry said.
“If it gets too loud, you might silent count. Other than that, we shouldn’t have too many problems.”
The one person who admitted that the atmosphere might make things just a little bit difficult was the one who will be most affected by it — quarterback Chris Todd.
If crowd noise makes it too hard to hear Gus Malzahn’s playcall in his helmet, Todd will peer to the sidelines for hand signals — a throwback to the Tony Franklin days — while still relying on Malzahn’s numbered tote board.
“You can’t quiet them down when you’re down in the end zone,” Todd said. “They’re going to get louder and they control a lot of that.”
On Sunday, coach Gene Chizik said he wasn’t sure whether he would try to simulate the crowd noise at this week’s practices.
“They just got to be ready to communicate and know that it’s going to be really loud,” Chizik said. “It’s going to be another great SEC venue.”
McCalebb played a game at Neyland last year, when Chatham Hargrave Military Academy took on the Vols’ junior varsity squad. The Vols came out on top, 37-21.
“I have good memories when I played there,” he said. “But this is going to be a whole different thing playing in front of 110,000.”
Auburn-Arkansas to kick off before sunset
The time and network have yet to be set, but Auburn will play its first day game of the season Oct. 10 at Arkansas, the league announced Monday.
CBS exercised its six-day option for that date, only setting the LSU-Florida game for 7 p.m. — the second half of its doubleheader. That leaves four time slots and network options for the Auburn-Arkansas game.
—2:30 p.m.; CBS
—11 a.m.; ESPN
—11:30 a.m.; ESPNU
—11:21 a.m.; SEC Network
McKenzie’s role still undefined
Gabe McKenzie played on both sides of the ball Saturday against Ball State, even recording a tackle in his second tour as a converted defensive end.
Both his opportunities didn’t come until the fourth quarter — long after the Tigers took control of the game and emptied the bench.
“We’re just trying to see exactly where Gabe can help our team the most,” Chizik said. “We’ll just kind of take that step by step and see where we go with it. Really proud of Gabe for just being really unselfish and doing the things that we ask him to do.”
McKenzie, a senior who missed the entire spring with an unspecified medical condition, has not been made available for interviews since the 2008 season.
Homecoming
Berry, who grew up less than three hours from Neyland Stadium in Antioch, Tenn., will have an abundance of friends and family in attendance Saturday.
“It just feels good to go back home and play, have all my family there,” Berry said. “Just to show them what I’ve been doing down here.”
Berry was recruited by Tennessee and “considered them heavily” before choosing Auburn.
All the pomp and circumstance promises to bring back some memories.
“Growing up at Tennessee, that’s all you see — orange and white,” Berry said. “I can’t tell you how much I’ve heard ‘Rocky Top’ growing up.”
Tailback talk
Tate and Tennessee’s starting tailback Monterio Hardesty are phone friends.
Though he’s never met him in person, Tate said he and Hardesty have mutual friends and have chatted a few times.
“He seems like a pretty cool guy,” Tate said. “He’s one of those guys who’s having a pretty good year this year and people didn’t know about it. I always thought he was a better running back than (Arian) Foster … just from watching the games
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