Almost of my most memorable experiences in live viewing of college football have come in Lane Stadium. The rest have all been in other locations, but always involved our beloved Hokies ('95 Sugar Bowl, '05 Sugar Bowl, '16 Belk Bowl, etc).
I've more or less assessed college football at large through my personal lens... everything that makes Lane Lane.... the seating, the production value, the general fan engagement, etc, which nurtured my love for the game and made me believe that this is what college football was... which brings me to my visit to Wake Forest over the weekend.
Only this game and one Liberty game are the only two to not involve VT. I would not love this sport the way that I do, if my experiences were similar to these games, which if at Lane and with a similar home team result, would have been electric.
So what I'm looking for is... what stadium experiences in college football have you visited that lived up to the billing? What made them distinctly awesome? Which ones, that even despite having good teams make for a lousy game day experience?
Comments
Miss St gets loud with the cowbell.
PSU was over rated, UT was too, both didn't want to stand and had to much act like you've been there before and expect a TD every drive.
Bama was impressive stadium
WVU is interesting for me because I know so many alumni that I have a great time, I wouldn't suggest wearing anything but blue and gold there.
Ole Miss is a fantastic tailgate.
OU was impressive for the stadium and the walk outside, but atmosphere wasn't great.
GT has the beat skyline in football
Hawaii has some of the best, nicest fans, great tailgates, great weather too, aloha stadium is a rust bucket though, get a tetanus shot before you go /s
Not a fan of clemson's stadium, if you have 2nd tier tickets then there is no way to take seats on the first tier if someone leaves early. Also standing on the hill sucks if your calves aren't ready. Entrance was so so. But like enter sandman it was probably better before ESPN made it a bigger thing than it was.
Colorado has a fantastic view. in game fans were so so.
I'm sure I'm missing some but these are the ones that stood out. (I've been to 53 stadiums total, with 40 some of them watching games that did not involve the Hokies, I alway cheer for the home team when I go.)
Interesting take on PSU. The media seemingly places them on our level...but with a near doubling in capacity. Never been there though despite growing up on MD.
When I went the student section wasn't all one section, so that probably helps. But we got yelled at for cheering ... so it's just big.
Ditto. My Aunt and Uncle were there for decades, so we went once every couple of years for quite a while. It kept getting bigger and bigger, and peak loud kept getting louder, but it was always a quiet place full of people sitting down. OTOH, they do know their school song.
Second on Ole Miss. The way I've described it is every 4th person in the grove is the hottest girl you've ever seen
Of the places I've actually been to:
EDIT: Can't believe I forgot about Ohio State. They get loud, but not as loud as Clemson or Lane IMO. Also, there are some bad seats in that stadium - If you're under the deck you won't be able to see half of the field.
EDIT #2: Also forgot about ND and Tennessee:
Clemson is good for big games. The tailgating scene is always strong though. Since they've gotten into that really high expectation, elite category their games against lesser opponents tend to turn into whine-fests if it's not a complete blow out. The moaning and groaning gets very audible, and fast. The students tend to be pretty into it regardless.
I really enjoyed the game at Clemson. Impressive atmosphere and tailgating. Helps that we kicked their butts in 2007 when I went. Florida State night game in 2008 was great pre game but the chop got old after about three times. Miami is as bad as everyone says.
The Shoe at anOSU is a fun experience with tailgates galore.
Beating OSU at the Shoe was a game I'll never forget. The venue is just straight up impressive and fans were pretty nice.
Funny story-my friend and I had seats in the upper end zone (near he 10,000 foot tall flagpole /s) and after a great early Hokie play yelled out "That's right boys-we're not Navy!" (if you recall tOSU had opened the year with a lackluster win over the Middies). Suddenly an usher in his mid 60s near us shouted "HEY! We'll have none of that kinda language here! In about ten minutes there's gonna be a 6 ft 10 black usher(sic) coming and if you don't watch it he'll throw you out!" We hadn't cursed or even put down their team-simply reminded them we were a tougher opponent than Navy! Still laugh about it to this day LOL!
Additional note-Friday night before the game we ate dinner at a bar on the main street about a half mile from the stadium. Had a couple drinks then were going next door to a pool hall to shoot. Unfortunately they were closed so we returned to the bar and plunked 50 cents down at a bar table to play doubles against the folks already playing- proceeded to win and play for the rest of the night-about four hours -without having to pay again. They gave us a hard time for saying 'y'all" to which my friend said "Really?? Y'all are LINE DANCING!" LOL.
One of the best football weekends ever. Traveling to the Shoe for a game? Cool. Winning at the Shoe over the eventual national champions? Priceless! (Fun fat- Ohio Stadium is just one block from "Lane Avenue"- coincidence I think not.)
Can't say we had such an epic interaction. On the way walking to the stadium, my friend (hokie) found a $100 bill on the sidewalk. Good omen
My grandfather went to tOSU back in the 40s (his dorm is still there). I dreamed of going to that game with him, but sadly it wasn't in the cards (he would have been like 92 or something). Hokies were his second favorite team.
I can't say I know much about modern OSU fans, but my grandfather was wearing his OSU hat at a casino buffet, and stared down another old codger from across the room with a Michigan hat. They gave each other death stares for about 120 uncomfortable seconds before laughing and going about their dinner.
One of my favorite classic ESPN commercials is a couple driving on their first date and getting to know each other. The guy (passenger) asks where she went to school and she says, "Oh, Michigan! Go Blue!" The guy suddenly bails out of the moving car into a ditch and when the car stops he yells, "Go Buckeyes!" and she peels out leaving him.
Here ya go
I had tickets to that game because we lived in Columbus then we moved 3 months before the game and couldn't swing the travel from SC. Sent a lot of texts after the INT to seal it.
I went to SC for law school. The tailgating is legit but different. A lot of the tailgating is done on the campus lawns, which is pretty cool. The actual gameday experience is good in some aspects and lousy in others. Playing in the Coliseum is cool, but it's an old multipurpose stadium that is too big. It doesn't fill up and does not feel intimate. The SC band and fight song are elite.
I once watched SDSU play against TCU with a guy named Fuente at OC. Didn't expect much and didn't tailgate. It was played in the now demolished Qualcomm Stadium (NFL size for G5 team). I took my Brazilian friends for their first American football experience. It was fun, but as one of my friends said, "I wanted to see an American football game, not a slaughtering" as TCU and Andy Dalton demolished SDSU that day.
Clemson is the same way, I've heard LSU is as well. It would be awesome if we could tailgate on the drill field.
For SC, there are not really any parking lots on the campus, but instead parking structures that are just off campus. So, there are logistical reasons related to being in the middle of LA that are not an issue at VT or pretty much most other major Universities not within major cities.
SC also has the benefit that the Coliseum is next door. Definitely way better than the UCLA option, which plays in Pasadena which can be over an hour drive away.
But yea, tailgating on campus lawns is a very campus-party like feel.
LSU was insane. Set up all over campus. I had an engineering professor who came to VT from LSU and he said they would allow tents to set up on Thursday night. He said the entire school revolved around football. Friday classes were basically treated as optional. Loudest game I've ever been to and the fans were pretty fun.
My son is at Auburn, and I've seen a bunch of AU games, great game day experience. Tailgating, seconding the SEC comment on super hot ladies everywhere, an awesome student section, and a great pre-game show including the flight of the War Eagle. Outside the student section it is a very proper and respectful crowd, and as my son tells his classmates, not nearly as engaged or rowdy as the overall Hokie crowd is. The scene at Toomer's Corner is hard to beat if the Tigers are ever able to get another W. I highly recommend a Saturday Down South at Jordan Hare.
Like 2/3's of the SEC has truly elite gameday atmospheres in terms of crowds, tailgating, and generally strong "this is college football" vibes everywhere you go around campus on gameday. The only downside is traffic can be absolutely brutal at some of these spots. The college towns don't necessarily have to be super remote, but a lot of them simply have too few access points, so there's an inevitable logjam. Clemson is this way as well. There's basically two routes to Clemson, and they are both fucking awful on gamedays. There's a couple sneaky routes locals know, but even then those let you skip the line to the front, but you still eventually get stuck in the line for awhile.
and then there is Vanderbilt which has the worst atmosphere and the only tailgaters e found were UF fans drinking at the holiday Inn bar across the street from the stadium. Also, I lied above, I didn't cheer for the home team cause no one else did either, it was a sad expirence outside if watching Tebow.
I've always enjoyed games at Carter-Finley. Their fanbase is similar to ours (if a bit more abrasive) and the tailgating in the lots around the stadium is excellent. Plus you can leave at halftime to chug a beer and/or whiskey depending on how the game's going. Stadium gets loud too.
Oh another game is Army-Navy, it's a must see. I've been twice, once in Baltimore and once in Jersey. It's a great atmosphere of two hated rivals that respect the hell out of each other.
here are some out west mostly:
Iowa is one of the best GameDays anywhere
Nebraska
Boise St in old days
Washington
USC
Oregon St
Hawaii
Fresno St
Nevada
hmm... UCLA and Cal are all memorable due to their classic bowl shape.
I"ve been to the following:
LSU - best college football environment I've been to outside Lane Tailgate environment was incredible, LSU fans were very welcoming and many invited us to their tailgates. Lots of good natured ribbing calling you Tiger Bait. Lots of gorgeous women and the stadium is very loud. We got crushed but it was a fun road trip
Nebraska - great tailgate environment as well...tied with LSU for environment, great experience and win
Clemson - another great venue, entrance/run down the hill a bit underwhelming, was there when VT called the Tigers to come down the hill and proceeded to beat them in 86 saw two other wins there in Death Valley including the beat down we gave them in 98 and 07
Notre Dame - cool campus..Touchdown Jesus...fans were friendly, very cold in November ...checked off on the bucket list along with a win
Pitt - some obnoxious fans, very cold in November too, great view of the rivers, I was there in their old stadium in 93 when we destroyed them 63-21 and racked up 500 yds rushing, we haven't done well at Heinz
Navy - fun watching the Midshipmen march into stadium, cool watching from the end zone, you can bring a blanket and let your kids run around with other kids on the hill and interact with the Middies...cool F-18 outside stadium
WVU - lots of abrasive/abusive fans, having the Mountaineer running around and shooting the rifle behind you can be obnoxious, was there in 99 ....the place was quiet when Shayne kicked the field goal except for us Hokies
UVA - everyone is dressed up like you are going to the horse races, of course lots of condescending and arrogant Hood ...The UVA Pep Band was obnoxious , UVA finally got a real band after so any complaints from opposing teams about their halftime antics
UNC - eh, better sit up high, was in low rows and the players pretty much block your view
WFU - stadium is a mini version of Lane
NC State - fun place
Duke - not many fans
Maryland - stadium is rather old and needs updating ...been there for more Michigan games than VT, lots of Michigan fans in DC
Syracuse - sucks driving a long way home after a loss...that last minute TD pass from McNabb to Brominski was heartbreaker
Temple - Veterans Stadium was in sad shape at the time, hardly anyone there
Rutgers - was there in a massive rainstorm in 99, didn't see much due to weather
GT - lost 6-3 in 90, all I remember was going to the Varsity
ECU - fun tailgating, fans were cool
Nebraska was the best away fans I have ever encountered. They were awesome, and the tailgate scene is the best I've seen- comparable to VT. WVU until last year were easily the worst. Easily- but last year was fine up there- no issues. ND was a great trip- great fans, great campus, great local bars- I really enjoyed it. Miami fans are trash. MD fans don't care about football, and are fine at tailgates, etc. They just don't care, so they will talk about your team or the NFL, etc. UVA and Duke are lame- no juice.
I went to Clemson as an undergrad. This was back in the day (1997 to 2001) when they were mediocre at best. The atmosphere was excellent for the big games against FSU and South Carolina. The rest of the games were good too but not at the level of those two.
I have been to Auburn, West Virginia, and Tennessee. Auburn was a fun experience. Tennessee was probably the biggest disappointment. They hosted Florida and it was Manning vs. Wuerffel. At that time it set an NCAA attendance record but I don't recall it ever getting as loud as Lane.
Agree on Tennessee. It was one of the dumpiest stadiums I've been to and was not very loud. I was there for a Kentucky game in 2014 I think. They won big but it never really got very loud.
My first time at Tennessee was for Miami game and Houston broke off a 70 yard ru or something and there was a clap. Then Miami stopped them from getting in the endzone and the Miami fans all 1500 of them were louder than all of UTs fans.
I've never been, but I hear if you buy one ticket at loluva, you get the whole row to yourself for free.
http://twitter.com/RTD_MikeBarber/status/1578777682309185537
UNC - very corporate atmosphere and the lower bowl is pretty shallow. Lowest rows gave the worse view of the field and the chair backs will absolutely wreck your shins.
Duke - zero atmosphere, zero tailgate scene, but it's effectively a VT home game every time we play there.
NCSU - rabid fanbase that can be assholish. Probably the most authentic college football atmosphere you'll find in NC. Underrated tailgate scene.
ECU - only went once and don't plan to go back. Similar stadium to NCSU, and when the fans show up, it gets rowdy. They have a serious inferiority complex that will drive you crazy.
Wake - not much of an atmosphere, but the stadium itself is a carbon copy of the Lane blueprints pre-expansion. The worst seats there are better than anything you say in as a student in Lane.
Indiana - Fans literally showed up to tailgate and not go to the game. They treated the game itself as an inconvenience. Stadium is so a carbon copy of Lane, but they added the press box to the tall sideline. They also bowled it in, which they handled in an interesting way that Tech should consider for the North End Zone. Zero atmosphere, though.
UVa - Had upper deck corner seats next to the MVs. It was a relatively benign experience. Stadium is kind of boring, and it was brutally cold. It's like they stuck a 2nd deck on Wallace Wade in Durham.
Indiana in fact is the exact same stadium on the initial build (we expanded the east and then added completely seperate North and South end zones.)
I've read the reason we can't bowl in the end zones is a difference in state building codes. If we expand the design of the East and West stands now, we have to come up to code in those areas (and based on current fire codes and water/bathroom standards, we would have to extensively rebuild the East and West infrastructure).
So none of the new stands (SEZ/NEZ) can physically touch the existing ones.
I've also read that the major hindrance to redesigning the NEZ are weight considerations regarding a sewer line under the NEZ. That one seems (on initial inspection) to be solvable.
Would love to expand the endzones to within an inch of the east-west to avoid the code limitations if plausible.
That is exactly what NCSU did with their press/suite towers. If you are under the concourse and look up, there's a small gap between that structure and the stands.
UVA - it sucks, from the parking to the stadium itself, to the fans. I went to the game that was Chris Long's senior day that we pounded the crap out of them so that was fun
Duke - inexplicably boring, like only fun part was my friends and I being their. $80 Uber I had to wait 90 minutes on. Hindsight should've just walked but I was intoxicated so that may not have been the best option
NCSU - I find it to be a blast, Raleigh would be the only city I'd consider living in. I have State friends that we sat with but the surrounding folks were pretty pleasant
ECU - the students were what this board is complaining about our students acting like. Stadium was tiny and annoying, great party though
Hampden Sydney - maybe the only population more pretentious than UVA/UNC, the tailgate is fun I guess, I just don't feel like wearing a bow tie and blazer to drink in a parking lot for 3 hours
Almost did right out of college, but managed to find a good living surrounded by cows and corn. If things are to ever change in my current situation it's #1 on my target list
If you ever do, we'll save a spot for you at the bar for the games.
And hey if you still want cows, just go a couple miles outside 540 and there are plenty of opportunities. Just have to deal with the tobacco instead of corn
Just attended Tennessee at LSU this weekend. Tiger Stadium is absolutely massive, it looks like a true colosseum. Campus was entirely meh, and although there was a lot of tailgates, they were super spread out / sporadic. The inside of the stadium is a dump but once you get to your seats is very impressive. It never got very loud but I would guess that was probably because it was roughly 40% UT fans. I met a guy in LSU gear at a bar in the Orlando airport who said this was supposed to be the 5th biggest crowd ever in the stadium (which means they never sellout I guess?).
Edit: The section we sat in was mixed with UT and LSU fans and I didn't see anything overly rude. The LSU fans certainly chirped a little but nothing serious. Granted UT was rolling so maybe things would be different if it was closer. It was also an 11am game so I have to imagine people weren't quite as liquored up.
My first college game in person was back in 09. Then #3 ranked USC was visiting Washington. Wife and I were in town to get married (yes, fall wedding) and her father gave us money to get tickets to the game. I thought, for sure, that this was going to be a blow out. BEAUTIFUL weather, sold out rowdy crowd, high fives all around, and it was so loud you couldn't hear yourself think - 4 quarters later, the Huskies pulled off the upset on a late drive that ended with a game winning fg, and the crowd rushed the field for the cherry on top. Fucking unforgettable.
Boston College is complete ass. Stadium sucked, bathrooms sucked, food choices sucked. I didn't check out the campus.
Ohio State - nice stadium, but our seats were ass. The crowd was really into the game though, that was fun.
Odu - pretty average, crowd was loud but I suspect that isn't an every game thing (they were playing us)
And I've been to a handful of both games here and there, those experiences - to me - are always about equal. (Except for the independence bowl - that shit sucks)
U-dub is a seriously underrated fan experience.
Ohio Stadium (2014) massive and fun. Lane the next year was probably a tad louder, but it's not like they're quiet. It's like attending a cross between a football game and a loud catholic mass- super structured fan activity. We had to stick around for "Carmen Ohio" before we walked out (The wife did grad school there). Probably too obvious to mention, but I enjoyed myself that visit.
Heinz Field (2015 Pitt vs ND, 2018) It's a sterile pro stadium and the Pitt Panthers are definitely the city's JV team; can't fill the stands. Fan participation was decent, but there were easily more ND fans the first trip (I wore my "25" Beamer jersey for the farewell tour, got some well-deserved and good natured ribbing for showing up like that.) "Sweet Caroline" is just surreal since the WVU gameday video is more front and center in my conscience than actual Neil Diamond. I saw most of the tailgating in my parking garage and that made me really sad for some reason (I was also getting ready to move, and that was the game I was finally going to see VT before I left).
I'm moving back to Ohio and I'd really like to see the difference now that Pitt's good.
Notre Dame (2016 & 2019) the fantastic energy in the lit student section is certainly accentuated by the lame, quiet, and pale regulars. The band pipes in noise pre-snap, and would often be blasting when the ball was snapped. Cheating fucks. Stadium is old on purpose- there is almost no space between the wall and the field. They finally replaced the wooden bleachers and added a 20th century video board by the second visit.
Memorial Stadium (BC- 2021) - Stadium was small and felt like it was designed for another sport. The crowd wasn't likely that affected by Covid, but there was a vax requirement to get in the stadium. Hokie fans everywhere, and I wasn't expecting that. We were awful. Really shows you how much better things there are to do in Boston- the video crew only used 3 areas in the stadium that didn't have any orange presence. They seemed to be really conscientious about their weak home draws. I took a friend to their first CFB game and tried to convince them that almost any other stadium is worth a ticket.
Memorial Stadium (2022 "The 'Zou", LaTech vs Mizzou) - it's a pretty nice (smaller) SEC stadium with a pretty decent crowd. Student section was loud. Fun game to watch- kind of wish I had gone to the UGA game a couple weeks later (or any game since 2018, really).
Was fortunate to be invited to a corporate box for the Army-Navy game a few years ago at the Linc. That was sublime. An endless spread of food, bottomless beer fridge, and bourbon that just kept regenerating whenever it got low. But the cadets definitely get juiced up for that game and the tailgating scene outside was great. Pretty cool experience.
Been to a few VMI games over the years. Pretty tame environment but the cadets also get pretty juiced up. Their spring season a few years ago when they won the SoCon was pretty fun to follow. Tailgating scene is small but pretty cool.
Biggest nobody cares game I have ever been to is at Washington and Lee. Tailgated in the parking lot which was basically just drinking by the car, nothing special. You don't need tickets for the game and basically just show up whenever. There was some sort of alumni lawn party going on at the lawn right by the football field and it didn't end when the game started. Play was happening on the field and the band for the event was still playing and people were dancing drinking their mimosas lol. Just carried our beer right over to the stands from the tailgate.
I'll skip all the standard ones for VT opponents and bowl games...
USF (Raymond James Stadium) - I went quite a few times back when USF was good (2007-2010), including when they took down #3 WVU. For a college team playing in an NFL stadium, it was a surprisingly good atmosphere. The student section was raucous but well-behaved and friendly.
FIU (Riccardo Silva Stadium) - What you'd expect... small, nearly empty, quiet. My high school football team drew a better, louder crowd. Probably had better concessions, too. I guess the "pro" is that parking and getting in was easy? I went in and out of the stadium a few times to my car because why not, wasn't a problem; genuinely felt like a HS football game.
Texas (DKR Texas Memorial Stadium) - I had high expectations for this one, going to a season opener and Charlie Strong's first game at UT, and this being the biggest stadium I've ever stepped foot in. Parking and getting in was surprisingly easy. The disappointment started when I realized how few people were tailgating, and how many of those who were tailgating did so in a parking garage. I genuinely don't know how people didn't die from smoke inhalation. The stadium has a lot of cool features (the end zone viewing area was unique), Bevo, etc, and the facilities/concessions were above average. Sitting down, it was hot; no breeze in that stadium, which sucks in Texas summers. The team entrance was completely underwhelming and the stands weren't filled until mid-way through the 1st quarter. The "The Eyes of Texas" was about as lame as UVa's fight song, and almost as grating as The Chop. For having 100k fans, it was disappointingly quiet; Lane is at least 1.25x louder on any given Saturday. No real interaction with any of the fans, everyone kept to themselves and wouldn't even dish out high fives to strangers sitting next to them. It was the most boring football experience I've ever had, and we haven't been back since even though we live 15 minutes away.
Lil Beam's Barn is a great tailgate. Lower deck is fun and into the game. Upper deck noticeably less so - just feels like you are so far away from the game. It gets over 90 outside and the place just melts. Cooks the fun out of the crowd. A three score deficit will do the same. But with decent weather and a close game its closer to VT than anywhere else I've been.
Only saw 1 other person put it on the list, but Notre Dame!
Probably our fondest away game. Lots to do/see/visit on campus before the game. Phenomenal history once you set foot in the stadium. I have never cared much for ND, but after visiting, it is easy to understand where the pride comes from. Deep, rich football history.
I have also been to Alabama's spring game, twice. It has been several years, but Tech's spring game was a weekend I worked and Bama's was the weekend I was off.
Every college football fan needs to go to the Bear Bryant museum. It will give you chills. You gain an understanding of why SEC football is as much a religion as it is a sport after visiting. Lots of history in the stadium here as well. The statues set in the walkway to the entry of Bryant-Denny is impressive.
So cold though. Also got asked and then told to sit down a lot.
We were so loud too. Lots of ND fans were turning around glaring. It surprised them to have such a loud environment. Loved every frigid minute of it.
Everyone at Doak-Campbell was really nice. ...right up until we took our first drive straight down the field into the endzone. Tone changed a bit after that. The alumni section does not take kindly to a very vocal APFOW when they're getting their ass kicked 24-3. It did make for one of the greatest pictures of all time though.
There's an Ass Pocket somewhere in this sea of garnet.
It's like you aren't even trying to blend in!
I was somewhere in that crowd, too!
Started out normal, but by the end all you could hear were VT fans.
The guy next to me (season ticket holder with big elbows) left at half time with his wife. I was a lot more comfortable without him grimacing and complaining, and trying to get more elbow room.
Other than the guy next to me and a handful of angry fans in the stands above me, most of the crowd was pretty affable and well-behaved, even after the Hokies owned the place.
I guess I wasn't paying all that much attention during the game to how many Hokies were around me. When I saw they did the 360 pics for the game I went looking for myself, as one does. It...uh... wasn't difficult.
This is pretty much what Wallace Wade looks like the few times I've been. More noise when Duke is on offense than the other way around and being asked to sit by the locals. Amateurs.
Their alumni surprised me. The only time we sat was during media timeouts.
Air Force Academy Falcons Stadium.
I described it in other threads. Air Force cadets pregame is pretty cool.
Flyovers.
Parachute drop into stadium.
4,000 Cadets by unit enter stadium from underground area beyond North endzone.
4,000 Cadets cover field, do simultaneous about face and swarm stadium seats with insane war cry.
Watch the first 20 seconds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brCSQhJEAn8
Its legit. We always had seats where they rushed right at us, it was really cool.
Friend of mine went to the AF Academy. Remembering his comments. Not sure if things have changed in the past 30 or 35 or whatever years, but when he was there ...
(1) Attending the football game was mandatory - and they would take attendance.
(2) You only had a fairly thin coat to freeze in while at the stadium.
(3) Most places, when you are getting snow off the field, you use snow blowers or even people with shovels. At the Air Force Academy, they just hover a big helicopter over the field and blow it off.
Sigh..had an appointment to the Air Force Academy (and had passed the flight physical and fitness tests, but 18 year old me wasn't ready to commit to 9 years (4 yrs college,1 year flight school, 4 year tour). Other 3 places I applied and was accepted were William and Mary, Duke (my dad's alma mater) and Virginia Tech (where two sisters were already attending. Definitely made the right choice though I do occasionally ponder the road not taken at the Academy(dad was career USAF meteorologist for most of career and mom was a USAF air traffic controller before she started having kids). (Both were mustangs who met at OCS in Lackland and were married there after mom -who was one class ahead of dad-pinned on his bars) . They had a wonderful 50 year marriage 'til he passed. Sorry-that last was a bit of digression lol.
Uva: already been said, but parking is awful. Stadium concourse is not great. Fans are pompous. Cavman, dumb.
Duke: blugh.
UNC: pretty campus to tailgate on, just not a lot of room to spread out. Really puts the "tailgate" into tailgating.
FSU: outside of the stadium is gorgeous. War chant gets so damn annoying...kudos to them. Tallahassee is a dump.
Louisville: city rocks. Really nice stadium, though they really over expanded a couple years ago. Never been to a big game...so it was their 40% capacity watching them get trampled crowd. Last game I went to there was a few years back when AJ Dillon ran for a billion yards.
Got friends with Arkansas and UGA ties...dying to test out those waters.
They don't call it Tallatrashee for nothing
I mentioned LSU Tiger Stadium above, here are a couple others I've attended:
ND - Gorgeous campus (albeit not the prettiest I've visited, that title goes to Stanford). Stadium is damn nice after their latest round of improvements, I'm talking super swanky details and features. Tailgating is commendable but not nearly as impressive as I was expecting. People have been super duper friendly to me both times (both Tech games). South Bend is a dump but is apparently getting better and the bar scene is very bad.
UNC - Never went to a game but my college gf attended for grad school. I was in town for plenty of home games and it seemed no different than any other Saturday in the fall. Only real tailgating I ever saw was at the fraternity houses. Pretty campus and Chapel Hill is an awesome college town (like Charlottesville if they took all the best bars and restaurants and put them all in one long strip on the edge of campus).
UVA - I may get flack for this but Charlottesville is a great little city. As mentioned by plenty others above, the football experience is much tamer and less impressive than anything Tech offers. I saw way more tailgating than I ever witnessed at UNC however I was there for the Tech game last year and the crowd was close to 50-50.
Cal - I may be biased bc I have a lot of family that went to Berkeley. Love the town, love CA in general, and its hard not to root for a team that has perennially been down. Stadium is really awesome (it's built directly over a fault line for goodness sake) and is up in the Berkeley hills. Also many of the fraternity houses are right next to the stadium so its great people watching walking up.
WVU - Absolute madness. In HS I took the SAT 2s at Morgantown HS then walked down the street to wake my brother up at his fraternity house. We proceeded to head to his fraternity tailgate and I got to experience the craziness that is WVU firsthand. WVU then shellacked Syracuse by the order of 50+ points. Morgantown is not great, definitely has a beaten down feel and not just because of the way college students abuse the housing. Back when I went it was well known the students were assholes to opposing fans, I've heard its much better these days.
ECU - Greenville is an absolute shithole but the gameday scene is super wild. I don't think I could survive it now that I'm a decade removed from college. Tailgating is great, tons going on all over and they party hard. I met Keith Stone (from the Keystone commercials) at a tailgate one year. Students are straight up dickheads and were very rude to me then, who knows if they're better now. I've mentioned on this site previously but a kid tried to fight me one game (my first game there) and my best friends older brother had to intervene. Bars are damn fun and since NC doesn't allow happy hour they have drink specials all night. Live music pretty consistently at a couple bars and if I remember correctly they close the roads downtown to cars so its pedestrian friendly.
ODU- Small, weird dimensions, few amenities. I've been in several nicer high school stadiums.
UVA- Ugly stadium, largely empty, quiet, fans whine about you standing. I remember middle school games with a livelier atmosphere.
FSU- great time, cool stadium inside, really nice area directly outside the stadium, Tomahawk chop gets old fast (until you do the mock chop).
Florida-Georgia in Jax- Pure, unrepentant alcoholism and partying. Most people don't even go to the game.
LSU- best tailgate food, great environment, friendly fans, stadium itself is pretty impressive inside.
Pitt- awesome food options, great infrastructure since it 's an NFL stadium, but the atmosphere was lacking big time. Students were counting the days till basketball season.
Never forget sitting in the top row of stands-backs against the wall- and seeing a UVA student two seats
down .... reading a book !! WTF did you come to the game for?
Mississippi State:
Great tailgating. Great game day vibe. I now HATE cowbells, and if I ever go back there I'm taking hearing protection...
Florida State: Great place to watch a football game.
UVa: Great to be at a place where Hokies outnumber the home team, and you can party pretty hard there. But it's pretty lame compared to places that care about football.
Friend and I were tailgating at Lane North few years back. Parked in the medical center deck but due to poor signage we accidentally parked in the wrong deck. We parked, pulled out the cooler and speaker and had our own two person tailgate. My friend was sitting in camp chair behind the car(but not in the way of traffic f0 facing the car; I was standing next to the driver's door. I saw a UVA police car slowing to a stop right behind us, so I slipped my beer into the open drivers window cupholder(confusing my friend who hadn't seen the lady cop pull up behind him). She greeted us and asked if we were here for the game-we said yes ma'am. She said "We've gotten a few complaints 'cause this level is the entrance to the cancar wardand y'all aren't supposed to be tailgating here, and you can't be drinking or have music on and you're not allowed to have open flames." My drunk self immediately replied 'well we don't have any open flames". A smile almost cracked across her face and she said "Y'all gonna be leaving for the game soon?" to which we replied yes. She then said. I'm gonna circle back through here in an hour - don't be here then and have fun at the game". We thanked her and breathed a sigh of relief as we were sure we were gonna be arrested (yes other than the DUI I got years ago, this is the most almost--arrested I've ever been). Makes for a great story to tell future Hokies though!