LSU football: Coverage map, announcers, local listings vs. Tennessee

LSU football is off to a scorching 4-1 start in what many considered to be a rebuilding year for the program. The Tigers have won four games in a row after dropping their Week 1 game against Florida State by just one point. Confidence in Baton Rouge could not be any higher at the moment, which means it’s the perfect time for a heavyweight bout on the Bayou.

No. 8 Tennessee rolls into town looking to win at Tiger Stadium for the first time since 2005. The Bayou Bengals would make a massive statement to the nation with a win. However, it’s going to require a monumental effort from Brian Kelly’s men to make that happen. LSU’s game against the Volunteers has primetime potential. But due to other Southeastern Conference games, it’ll be played before the sun reaches its peak position, never mind finds its home in the western sky.

Here is everything you need to know about the Tigers and Volunteers’ broadcast:

LSU football: Coverage map, announcers, local listings vs. Tennessee

For the first time this season, the Bayou Bengals will be on ESPN without their main commentary crew. Whereas LSU fans are usually treated to the soothing voices of Joe Tessitore, Greg McElroy and Katie George, that won’t be the case on Saturday. Those folks will be in the Lone Star State for the Red River Rivalry game between Texas and Oklahoma—which also kicks off at 11 a.m.

On the call in Baton Rouge will be Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Dan Orlovsky (color), Kris Budden (sideline) and Todd McShay (analysis). As alluded to earlier, this will be the first time that the Tigers will have a game called by this commentary team. Every game they’ve played so far has either had Tessitore, McElroy and George or it’s been on SEC Network[+].

The game will also be available on ESPN Radio, where the A-team consisting of Marc Kestecher, Kelly Stouffer and Ian Fitzsimmons is on the call.

It’s set to be pandemonium in the Boot as LSU prepares to host a rare kickoff before noon. Gates into Death Valley will open at 9 a.m. and beer sales inside the venue will begin at that time, as well. As of the time this article is being published (6 a.m. CT on Saturday), thousands will have already flooded onto campus as gates officially opened at 5 a.m.

The Tigers announced earlier in the week that Tiger Stadium has officially sold out, which means that there will be 102,321+ packed into the venue this weekend. This should come as no surprise as this game is the biggest on the Bayou Bengals’ campus to date this season. It’s not every year that Tennessee comes to town, it’s even rarer when the Vols come down to Louisiana ranked inside the Top 10. To call the atmosphere in the capital a party would be a gross understatement.

Be sure to tune into ESPN on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. CT with Wischusen, Orlovsky and Budden to watch the latest installment of the LSU vs Tennessee rivalry featuring Kelly’s surging Tigers and Heupel’s high-flying Volunteers.