Dooley Time!

Well last weekend was the start of the NCAA College Football Season, and I started it off by going to Knoxville! We went to the season opener at Neyland Stadium and watched the Vols take on UT Martin. It was one of the most exciting games I have ever been to, not because of the competition level, but because of the significance of the game. I've seen Tennessee beat Florida, Alabama, and Arkansas (in 6 or 7 overtimes). I have seen Tennessee blow out teams in season openers before, and those go down as some of the best games that I have seen. I watched Peyton Manning, Chad Clifton, and several others play football at Tennessee. But this game was neat because it was my favorite football team (Tennessee) playing my hometown college (UT Martin).

Now no one really expected UTM to come away with a win, although it would have been quite a story if that had of happened, but most people expected a pretty good game. I honestly expected UTM to score at least once and possibly put up a fight in the first half. Just 2 seasons ago, UTM gave Auburn quite a game, almost winning the game. But Tennessee came out fighting and although they had their share of rookie/first game mistakes, they put on a good show. No one really knows what to expect from Tennessee this year. We are a new team, with a new quarterback, and several first time players. There is also a new coach, Derek Dooley. Although we still do not know what to expect for the rest of the season, the first game went off well and gave Tennessee fans hope for the season. The true test will come this Saturday when we play Oregon. It could end ugly, but with it being in Neyland Stadium and with people not knowing what to expect, Tennessee could pull off the upset.

Also this weekend, the NFL season begins. Tonight is the season opener. The Saints will take on the Vikings, and although I am not a Saints fan and was not pulling for them in the Super Bowl last season, I hope they beat the Vikings tonight. I want Favre to start this season off with a loss. Then if the Packers can win on Sunday, we will have a 1 game lead on them. It should be an exciting weekend of football with the NFL opener, the Packers game on Sunday, and 2 Monday Night Football games. Plus Tennessee plays in a big game, and the end of the regular season for NASCAR is Saturday night at Richmond. This weekend will be all about sports for me.

Matt