It’s that time again—CFB is almost back, and so is the hype. EA Sports is gearing up to drop CFB 26, and fans are buzzing. But one of the biggest hot-button topics? The toughest places to play. In the 2025 edition, the game made it clear—home-field advantage matters. Road games were no joke. But for CFB 26, the word is the stakes are getting even higher. EA is dialing up the intensity for hostile road environments, making every away game feel like survival mode. So, buckle up—it’s about to get even louder.

Reading play art just got trickier—and that’s only the beginning. According to EA Sports, CFB 26 is cranking up the chaos for visiting teams in tough environments. From the EA Sports website: “Away quarterbacks will struggle managing the clock—just like we’ve seen visiting QBs in The Swamp lose their composure in crucial moments. Kicking becomes dramatically tougher, especially with the game on the line. And in rivalry matchups? Expect more false starts, more broken communication, and more composure breakdowns as the crowd pushes every moment to the breaking point.” So now the question is—did EA get it right with their list of CFB’s most intimidating atmospheres? Or are fans ready to light up the forums over a few snubs?

Well, Josh Pate didn’t hold back when it came to EA Sports’ latest rankings. On the June 26 episode of his College Football show, he zeroed in on what he called a massive miss, leaving Tennessee out of the top 10 toughest places to play. “I don’t—I got all the respect in the world for the folks at EA—to have Tennessee outside the top 10 of toughest places to play in college football is evidence of drug use. Not only is Tennessee top 10, Neyland Stadium is the toughest place to play in college football. Don’t start with me. You can go argue with this wall over here. I’ve been there for the best of it,” said Pate. In short, for Pate, there’s no debate—Neyland is college football’s ultimate pressure cooker.

Josh Pate brought the receipts—and the volume. Reflecting on his own experience at Neyland Stadium, he made it clear this wasn’t secondhand hype. “This right here is not footage that we rip from a network—that is straight from the eye, Josh. I shot this myself. I’ve been there. I’ve been a part of it—deafening,” said Pate. But it’s not just the noise—it’s the mental toll. According to Pate, the relentless echo of Rocky Top becomes a psychological weapon. “You practice with it all week, blaring on the loudspeakers, and everyone’s drilling it into your head: ‘Gotta go beat Tennessee or this is what you’re going to hear.’ And it’s great if you go beat ’em and shut them up—but if you don’t?” So, for opposing teams, Neyland isn’t just a stadium—it’s a pressure cooker with a fight song that won’t quit.

Josh Pate painted a vivid picture of Neyland’s late-game madness—and it’s not for the faint of heart. “Do you know what it’s like to be trailing Tennessee? Tennessee takes the lead on you in the fourth quarter, and they’re just blaring Rocky Top. You got a hundred-plus thousand people singing it at the top of their lungs. Psychologically, it does something to you—because you convinced yourself all week, ‘We ain’t letting that happen.’ And then it starts to happen,” said Pate.

He took it a step further, comparing the moment to a natural disaster. “I’ve never been in an avalanche before—but I imagine Tennessee taking the lead on you in the fourth quarter, and Rocky Top blaring during one of the 9-minute commercial breaks you’re going to take, depending on the network—that’s what an avalanche of orange feels like.” And just like that, he gave Vol Nation its next slogan: “Bill Martin—avalanche of orange. Get the marketing ready. Get the promotion machine ready.”

While Pate named Alabama’s SEC rival as the toughest place to play, the pick came with plenty of weight—and history to back it up. The Alabama–Tennessee rivalry, famously known as the ‘Third Saturday in October’, is pure CFB firepower. Dating all the way back to 1901, this storied showdown has seen it all—dominant runs, dramatic upsets, and a cigar tradition that’s lasted generations. Bama leads the all-time series 59–40–7, but Vols snapped a 15-year losing streak in 2022, turning Neyland into a madhouse. It’s no wonder Pate didn’t hesitate: “So I not only do I have them top 10, not only do I have them top five—I got Tennessee as the number one toughest place to play in college football. These are non-negotiable. They are not debatable. These are not opinion. This is fact.”

With Tennessee crowned by Josh Pate as the toughest place to play, it raises a fiery question—where does Alabama itself stand? And what about their fiercest in-state rival, Auburn?

Alabama and its in-state rival’s rank

Josh Pate didn’t hold back when ranking Alabama’s home turf. Bryant-Denny may be steeped in tradition and hardware, but it lands at No. 8 on his toughest places to play list. Why? Success has softened the sting. “It’s tough to go in there and feel threatened when you’re favored by double digits every week,” said Pate. The fans, once ferocious, now seem more accustomed to winning than fueling it. Even with all the expansion and upgrades, the intimidation factor just isn’t what it used to be.

But don’t count Bryant-Denny out completely. When the lights are brightest, the crowd still delivers. Just ask Pate. “That Georgia-Alabama game may have been the best atmosphere we experienced all of last year,” he admitted. It’s just that those moments are rare. “You got 101,000 people that are fairly into it. That does not outaudible 88,000 people that are really into it.” Translation? The Tide’s house still has bite—it just needs more bark.

While Alabama fans may rest on decades of dominance, Auburn’s Jordan-Hare Stadium brings something different—raw chaos. Ranked No. 7 on Josh Pate’s list, he argued it could’ve easily been higher. “Jordan-Hare Stadium is just insane,” he said. When the Tigers are “decent to good” and a big game hits The Plains, the place goes nuclear. “The only people who doubt that are people who haven’t been in there,” declared Pate. And he backed it up by name-dropping the elite. “Call up Kirby Smart. Call up Saban. And call up Les Miles… they know.”

Still, Pate kept it real. The madness only erupts when the product on the field delivers. “Being a tough place to play doesn’t overcome your team sucking,” he joked, citing Auburn’s 2023 faceplant against New Mexico State. The issue? Consistency. “Auburn’s good in flashes, so you only get to see what I’m talking about in flashes. But when you see it—and especially if you’ve experienced it—you know.” So, when Auburn’s rolling, Jordan-Hare doesn’t just shake—it swallows teams whole.

Now, let’s see which stadium truly puts fear in visiting teams this season. The fans are loud, the stakes are high—and only the toughest survive.