ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit will be on the call for the Tennessee Vols' first round College Football Playoff matchup against the Ohio State Buckeyes on December 21 in Columbus. 

Herbstreit, who is a former Ohio State quarterback, joined Outkick's Dan Dakich this week to discuss the matchup between the Vols and the Buckeyes and he offered up a controversial take that's being viewed by some as an insult to Tennessee fans. 

The longtime ESPN College GameDay host told Dakich that Ohio State would be better off playing Tennessee in Neyland Stadium than in Ohio Stadium.

"When you go to Neyland Stadium, you put your white [uniform] on and it's [an] us against the world mentality, you know you're going to be booed, you know that people are going to be trying to tear you apart," said Herbstreit. "And you have your, kind of, you're insulated mentally as you prepare to walk in to that cathedral, and it's a beautiful stadium.

"You come home, after what just happened in Ohio State vs Michigan, Ohio State loses a fourth time (in a row to Michigan), there's a melee after the game, all of the social media stuff happening after the game. My only point, and I talked to (ESPN analyst) Joey Galloway about this after the show, my only point was can you imagine what Ohio State will do if they go three-and-out, or God forbid there's a sack against the best defensive line in the country? If that quarterback, Will Howard, gets sacked and there's a scoop and score and you're down 7-0. Ryan Day, Chip Kelly, Will Howard, how about the poor field goal kicker who missed two kicks against Michigan that a lot of people say quote unquote cost them the game? God forbid that kid comes out and misses a field goal in the game. So my only point was there's so many great fans, but right now under this climate, in these circumstances, yeah, I do think it would be better for them to go on the road and deal with the hostility of playing at Tennessee. But it is what it is. They're at home. And hopefully their fan base will be supportive — not only on great plays, but if they get down, if they deal with adversity, hopefully they'll get in their corner and try to will [Ohio State] to a victory."

(Herbstreit made similar comments, which drew heavy criticism, during the final College Football Playoff Rankings reveal show earlier this month.)

Click here to accept Marketing cookies and load this content

So let's get this straight. Herbstreit thinks that Ohio State would be better off playing in front of 101,915 rowdy fans at Neyland Stadium? 

We've heard plenty of players who have competed in Neyland Stadium say that when it's at its best, it's impossible to communicate on the field. 

And Herbstreit thinks Ohio State would be better off playing in that atmosphere than at home in Columbus because some Buckeyes fans might boo if a play doesn't go OSU's way? 

Seriously? 

I don't think I've ever heard a more absurd take about college football. 

All season we've heard SEC coaches — from Kirby Smart to Lane Kiffin — publicly talk about how insanely difficult it is to play on the road in the SEC because of the raucous environments. And yet Herbstreit thinks the Buckeyes have a better chance to win in Knoxville than they do in Columbus. 

I don't want to speak for Ohio State's players, but I can't imagine that any offensive player would prefer dealing with deafening noise when Tennessee is on defense at Neyland over being able to communicate easily in the horseshoe. 

It's easy to see why some Vols fans feel insulted by Herbstreit's comments. He clearly doesn't think Tennessee fans have a major impact on games if he thinks Ohio State would be better off playing in front of a raucous crowd at Neyland in a playoff matchup. 

And by the way, Kirk — it's possible for the home team to win a game when the fans are booing them. 

In 2023, Vols fans in Neyland booed Tennessee's football team a couple of different times in games that UT won (it happened in a win against South Carolina, specifically when the Vols elected to kick a field goal, and it happened the following game in a win against Texas A&M). 

Despite those boos, Heupel praised the Tennessee crowd after both games. I can't imagine that anyone on Tennessee's roster or coaching staff would've preferred to play those games on the road in Columbia and College Station instead of Knoxville. In fact, I think they'd laugh in your face if you even suggested that. 

If Herbstreit wants to suggest that Ohio State might not have a true home field advantage in this matchup because of the current climate in Columbus, then I get that. But suggesting that the Buckeyes would be better off playing in Neyland in front of that many rowdy Vols fans? That’s the part that just doesn't compute. 

Maybe Herbstreit is trying to influence the fans of his alma mater to be on their best behavior when the Vols visit Columbus on Saturday night. Or maybe he genuinely believes that the Buckeyes would perform better in a tough road environment on Rocky Top. Either way, it's a bizarre take that Tennessee fans will likely take personally. 

Tennessee’s 2025 football schedule provides a nightmare scenario for Vols fans

Not ideal