Freshman Florida receiver Percy Harvin has never played in Neyland Stadium.

Harvin has heard enough about it, though. His former high school coach, diehard Tennessee fan Chris Beatty, made sure of it.

"When I was really young, before I started getting recruited, he used to tell me how electrified Tennessee was," Harvin said. "I didn’t really pay it no mind. I was young. But that’s all he kept telling me."

Harvin is one of a handful of true freshmen likely to play today when Florida opens SEC play at Tennessee. With close to 109,000 expected to pack Neyland Stadium, it should serve as an early test.

How will Florida’s youngest players handle their first college road trip?

The crowd noise? The potential of falling behind early?

"That’s what I’m anxious to see," Florida coach Urban Meyer said. "I think, like everything, some will handle it a little better than others.

The big-time guys will probably handle it just fine. The guys that are not quite prime-time players yet might struggle for a minute."

Even though Beatty coached in Virginia Beach, Va., his Vols ties ran deep. Most of his family lived in Tennessee.

"They were at every game," Harvin said. "They had Tennessee plates, Tennessee flags, the inside of their car was all Tennessee."

Harvin has shown big-play ability early this season, scoring on a 58-yard catch-and-run last Saturday against UCF. Tennessee’s defense, with better size and speed, should present more of a challenge.

That was the advice upperclassmen Chris Leak and Andre Caldwell provided coming into Tennessee week.

"After last game, Chris and Bubba and them they came up to me and said you have been making plays, next week, here comes the real competition, stay settled and just keep doing what you do," Harvin said.

The hostile crowd should present another obstacle. Harvin went through that baptism at Landstown High, the dominant team in the Virginia Beach area. There were times when Harvin lost his cool, particularly in road games with the crowd against him.

A series of unsportsmanlike issues resulted in Harvin being suspended from February to the end of his senior year by the Virginia High School Athletic Association.

"I’ve been taunted all my life and I’ve learned some good lessons from taunting, unsportsmanlike conducts," Harvin said. "I’m pretty much ready to handle that side of it. I just need to stay focused and don’t let the crowd get me all wound up."

True freshman Florida quarterback Tim Tebow probably won’t play as much as he did in games against Southern Mississippi and UCF. But Tebow is a Leak injury away from taking meaningful SEC snaps.

Tebow visited Neyland Stadium two years ago as a Tennessee recruit, when the Vols rallied to beat Florida in the closing seconds.

"It’s one of the loudest stadiums in the country," Tebow said. "It’s loud and they come ready to support their team. I think they’re great fans."

Even with the scrutiny as a top quarterback recruit, Tebow said little in his past could prepare him for the crowd noise he’ll hear Saturday.

"High school can’t compare to Neyland Stadium," Tebow said. "You have do your best. Work hard in practice and have all your assignments down so when the game time comes you just react and play."

Meyer acknowledged that he’ll be selective in the true freshmen he’ll play Saturday, going with the players he’s most comfortable with.

"That’s a tough environment for a first (road) game," Meyer said. "I’m hoping to see what I think I’m going to see and that’s a bunch of guys ready to go play."

Harvin didn’t fall into a freshman trap of making bold predictions for the game.

"I just want to play hard and just keep my composure," Harvin said. "I just want to see how it feels to play in a stadium like that when the crowd ain’t cheering for you and are throwing stuff on you and things like that.

Just to see how I’m going to handle it and just keep my composure and just keep going."