Here's betting Phillip Fulmer and his staff would rather play Northeast-Hyphen State on Saturday night than Air Force.

You, the Tennessee fan, however, get more bang for your ticket-buying buck when the Falcons zoom in out of the wild blue yonder.

In past years, Tennessee's schedule would read "Open" for Saturday. The Vols would be resting up for Florida week.

However, 2006 marks the dawn of a new era in college football, the 12th game era.

When the NCAA passed legislation to allow a 12th game in the Division I-A regular season, it meant two things.

One, fewer open dates.

Two, a scramble by athletic directors to line up an extra opponent.

Hence, Air Force locks its radar in on Neyland Stadium for the first time.

It's a "buy" game for UT. The Vols pay a tidy sum for Air Force to make the trip east with no inconvenient obligation to play a return game in Colorado Springs.

As "buy" opponents go, Tennessee could have scheduled a less daunting foe than Air Force and its Flexbone offense to plop down between California and Florida.

But two forces were at work.

One, all things being equal UT athletic director Mike Hamilton prefers to take the high road in scheduling.

"We are the only Southeastern Conference school that has not played a Division I-AA opponent, at least in the last 20 years,'' Hamilton said.

Indeed, eight SEC schools will beat up on I-AA opponents this year and the others have recently. The last time the Vols played a I-AA foe was The Citadel in 1983 in Memphis.

The other factor was UT had an open date to fill so early in the season.

"We literally could not find a 1-A opponent,'' Hamilton said. "Very few teams have an open date the second week of the season.''

In shopping around, Hamilton discovered Air Force was willing to cancel a game with Northwestern for a Tennessee payday.

Thus, the Vols got a quality foe with an $850,000 price tag.

That's higher than the going rate. Considering the financial impact of a home game, it's worth it.

Marshall will earn $500,000 for a Sept. 23 visit. In 2007, Southern Miss will get $600,000, while Northern Illinois and Louisiana-Lafayette will get $750,000 each.

Playing Tennessee's schedule is certainly difficult for Fulmer. Making that schedule isn't as easy as you'd think.

And it gets tougher in the 12th game era as the laws of supply and demand go to work.

"They (prospective opponents) will shop their games,'' Hamilton said. "They'll take a call from Tennessee, but they also may be taking a call from Clemson, Alabama, UCLA and Oklahoma.''

Because of UT's 100,000 seats, it can pay top dollar. Still, it's still tricky.

Buffalo, a lower-rung 1-A program, cancelled games with West Virginia and Rutgers this year in favor of more lucrative deals with Auburn and Wisconsin.

Central Florida recently backed out of a 2007 game at Tennessee for a better deal with Texas. Consequently, Hamilton has boosted the contractual buy-out penalty from $10,000 to between $300,000 and $500,000.

UT always will schedule one or two top-tier opponents, the kind that require a home-and-home arrangement.

The next level is the two-for-one. UT currently has no such deals due, in part, to a 20-year, 10-game contract with Memphis.

Marshall, which also came here in 2003, is fulfilling the premature finale of a three-for-one arrangement.

The schools agreed to cancel UT's visit to Marshall in 2009 as well as the Herd's final trip here in 2010.

The upshot is that Hamilton has an opening to play with in 2009.

One option would be a neutral-site game. And, no, Bristol Motor Speedway is not going to happen.

More likely, he'll add an eighth home game.

Seven home games is UT's magic number in the 12th-game era.

"But the reality is, you run the numbers and every school in America can't have seven home games,'' Hamilton said. "It doesn't work.''

So you get out the checkbook and jump in the marketplace.

Florida Atlantic or Western Kentucky would have been cheaper guests Saturday. Easier to get a stop on third-and-4, too.

But for you, the fan, and your entertainment dollar, Air Force is a better value.

Enjoy it. Even if Fulmer can't.

Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276 or strange2@knews.com.