KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The second-ever matchup between the Vols and the Buckeyes is set to kick off Saturday night at 8 p.m. Eastern Time inside "The Shoe," but not every fan is watching from the same continent.
Bobby Inman said he'll be watching — even with a 5-hour time difference — all the way from the United Kingdom.
"The Vol game starts at 1 a.m. my time. It's scheduled to end, you know, [around] 4 a.m. or 4:30 a.m.," he said.
Inman, a Roane County native, said his father attended the University of Tennessee and he grew up in Roane County and Oak Ridge, which are both near Knoxville. He said he has lived in the UK for more than two decades, which means more than 20 years of watching the Vols play from overseas.
"I would have to pay, like, £5 to listen to a Vol game some nights and to get access through Yahoo. Nowadays, It's a little more easier with the sport becoming more global and technology kind of advancing," Inman said.
He said when there are night games, he's usually watching alone. Inman said he remembers in his early years when the Vols beat Florida at the last second with a field goal.
"It was 4 a.m. I couldn't cheer. I couldn't yell. I literally ran out into my yard and just kind of did like this for a little bit because I was in a silent kind of dance. There are some downsides to being the middle of the night when a game ends, that's for sure," he said.
This past October, he took a trip across the pond and introduced his then-fiancé to Tennessee. The trip included both of their families for a special occasion.
"We ended up getting married in the Smokies. I took the opportunity to replenish all of my Vols gear," Inman said. "I think I got four hats and shirts. She got some of the checkerboard dungarees."
Inman said he was able to take her to a football game while they were still in the United States.
"Turned out to be the Alabama game this year. What a great game to take her to — experience her first Vol game. It was just absolutely wonderful," Inman said.
He said his wife gets the hype of American football ever since she attended that game.
"She does now. Taking her to the game, she said for a couple of years that usually I'm very laid back. I'm a very calm person, but then all of a sudden Tennessee Football starts and I turned into this raging lunatic, and she said the words that are coming out of my mouth are English, but she just can't make any sense of them," said Inman.
He said if the Vols win this game, he'll be able to stay up for the New Year's Day game since it is earlier in the day. He said if they continue beyond, he may have to take some time off work to watch.