› UT players not sure what to expect at Bristol Motor Speedway,

KNOXVILLE — Like many of Tennessee’s players, Darrin Kirkland Jr. never has been to Bristol Motor Speedway, where the Volunteers face Virginia Tech in the “Battle at Bristol” on Saturday night.

Where the sophomore linebacker attended high school, however, is a little more than a 20-minute drive from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

“I haven’t been to the Indy (500), which is probably like a sin for Indianapolis people,” Kirkland joked Tuesday, “but I’ve been to the Brickyard (NASCAR race).”

After playing its first Thursday season opener in 25 years, Tennessee’s next game is at a NASCAR track, where everything about the routine and the setting will be different for all of the players and coaches involved.

Both the Vols and Hokies have sent coaches, support staffers and administrators to Bristol multiple times the past few months to assess and plan for Saturday night, but for the players there’s no reference point for this game.

“I’m expecting a big atmosphere,” defensive end LaTroy Lewis said. “You’ve got us and Virginia Tech both coming in and bringing both fan bases. Obviously we have a huge fan base, and it should be exciting, but so much as a distraction, I don’t see it being that.

“We play in front of 102,455 every week, and for us it’s just preparing the same way that we do any other game.”

Though the crowd of 150,000-plus is expected to break college football’s attendance record — currently it’s 115,109 set in 2013 when Notre Dame played at Michigan — noise might be less of a factor given the distance of most of the fans from the constructed field at the center of the halfmile track.

Tennessee is scheduled to have a walk-through at Bristol on Friday.

“I really just don’t know what to expect really,” Kirkland said. “I’ve seen it on pictures and on a map. I don’t know, it’s going to be different playing on an infield. I’m in my head and it’s kind of hard to envision, but I’m definitely excited for the experience. It’s kind of a once in a lifetime (game).”

No poll watching

The Vols fell eight spots to No. 17 in the Associated Press poll released Tuesday.

“At the end of the day, we pride ourselves knowing that the people within our locker room are the people (who) it really counts how much they respect our team,” Lewis said. “Falling out of the top 10 means nothing for us. All of our dreams, goals and aspirations are still on line, and we’re excited about where our team is headed.”

High-Tech tempo

Tennessee’s first two opponents couldn’t be more different in their tempo on offense.

While Appalachian State bled the play clock down to inside 10 seconds before every snap, the Hokies will push the pace, meaning the Vols will need to rely on their conditioning and tap into their depth, particularly on the defensive line.

Virginia Tech ran 89 plays in its opening win against Liberty, and ASU ran just 66 against Tennessee.

“Any time we see a fast offense,” Lewis said, “we pride ourselves on saying, ‘OK, you’re going to go fast, but we’re going to get lined up as fast, if not faster.’”

Tennessee’s defense should be used to facing a tempo offense given what it faced in practice all preseason, and the Vols have what they call a “Sonic” period where the offense goes as fast as possible.

“We’re trying to average between 16 and 17 seconds between each snap,” Kirkland said. “We’re expecting their offense to run at least 90 to 100 plays. We just have to prepare for all aspects of their game.”