“Hopefully our fans take that personally”: Vols HC Josh Heupel fires up supporters amid fake crowd noise accusations

Josh Heupel reacted on Wednesday to the allegation that Tennessee pumps in fake crowd noise at the Neyland Stadium. Alabama's radio play-by-play announcer, Chris Stewart, made the notable claim when the Volunteers hosted the Crimson Tide in a game where the noise peaked at 120 decibels.

“Second-and-16 is not what you’re looking for,” Stewart said. “Especially with the crowd noise being what it is here. You got 100,000+ and they also pipe in crowd noise, as well.”

When asked about the allegation during his Wednesday press conference, Josh Heupel kept his response brief and to the point, dismissing the claim without elaboration. The Tennesse coach instead used the opportunity to deliver a strong message to the Knoxville fanbase.

“Neyland [Stadium] doesn’t need anything fake piped into the stadium for that to be the loudest place in America,” Heupel said on Wednesday. “Hopefully our fans take that personally, enjoy this bye week and come back and be louder than ever next time we’re at home.”

Neyland Stadium delivered a deafening atmosphere during Tennessee's game against Alabama on Saturday, which contributed to the Crimson Tide suffering a 24-17 defeat. Bama committed four pre-snap penalties throughout the game as the intense crowd noise made communication and execution increasingly difficult.

Josh Heupel delivers his view on the expanded playoff's impact on the regular season

There's been a lot of talk about how the expanded College Football Playoff has impacted the regular season positively and negatively. The playoff will feature 12 teams this season, an increase from the usual four. Josh Heupel offered his take on the discussion on Wednesday.

“I think the passion and pageantry of college football is what makes it the draw that it is to so many fans out there,” Heupel said. “I don't think that the playoff has derailed any of the energy from fans and the importance of every game.

“It's different in that you can stub your toe and still have a chance to get in, but there's still such great urgency. And in this league and you got to come to play every single week. You just look at how everybody in this league, top to bottom, is really playing.”

Tennessee has been touted to make the playoffs after its explosive start to the 2024 season. The Vols are 6-1 and are currently ranked No. 7 in the AP rankings.

They took a hit following the loss to Arkansas in Week 6. However, the crucial win over Alabama last Saturday put the team back on track.

If Josh Heupel does lead Tennessee to the CFP this season, it would put them in contention to win the school's first national title since 1998.