Some people make a point to visit every Major League Baseball Stadium or every NBA arena. For SEC football fans, getting to each venue in the best football conference in America should be a priority.
Almost everywhere you could go from Norman to Columbia, west to east, and from Lexington to Austin, north to south, will provide a veritable cornucopia of tradition, class, and even a bit of nonsense. Few things are better than catching an SEC football game alongside a home crowd, even as a visitor.
Some places are more intimidating than others, certainly. Before even getting to the list, anyone with familiarity with the SEC will have a good idea which school ranks last for game-day atmosphere. But even in Nashville, you’re in Nashville. Plenty of worse places to be.
For this list, though, we focused simply on the game-day experience. From pre-gaming in the parking lots to staying through the quadruple zeroes, these are the schools ranked in order of fun.
Writer’s note: the ranking is based on my personal real-life experience, except for one instance
16. Vanderbilt
Is the problem that Vanderbilt football is bad or that Nashville isn’t? There are just so many other things to do in one of the biggest and best cities in the South that spending a nice fall afternoon watching the Commodores get blasted falls low on the priority list. Even when Vandy is decent, it’s hard to imagine getting too excited. As such, there’s no reason to make the game-day experience more, as it probably wouldn’t matter much, anyway.
15. Missouri
The worst stadium in the SEC makes Mizzou a bottom feeder immediately. Everything otherwise charming about Columbia and the campus goes out the door the moment you step inside Memorial Stadium. Concrete hideousness that once was a staple of football stadiums. Now a relic.
14. Kentucky
When you’re always playing second fiddle to basketball, you get the Vanderbilt problem. Kentucky, the state of, just doesn’t get amped for football the way it does for the hardwood sports. Far less energy going in, far less energy coming out.
13. Arkansas
Things have gotten better in Fayetteville in recent years. The stadium renovations have made Reynolds Razorback Stadium louder and more modern. But the concourses remain a disaster, and the lack of a real game-day-tailgating feel is one of the worst in the SEC. Just where the stadium is located makes pre-gaming more of a chore than it should be.
12. Mississippi State
MSU is the most tricky on the list. When the Bulldogs are good (rarely), Davis Wade Stadium is absolutely raucous. Those cowbells will either fire you up or drive you mad. The effects have become especially pronounced since the 2014 expansion enclosed the west side. The flip side, and why Mississippi State is this low: Starkville.
11. Oklahoma
Opinion of this one is tainted as I’ve never gone to Memorial Stadium as a journalist, only a fan. It’s…fine? It remains the most leave-early place I’ve ever been to, and pre-game tailgating is awkward. Of course, the product on the field is usually dynamite, making in-game enjoyment an, well, enjoyment. And it’s a fun place to walk to just about wherever you have to park. But it’s not like the others below it.
10. Texas
The growth of Austin has come at the expense of a more sanitized, corporatized Longhorns game day. The funk that defined the city for the better part of the 20th century shifted from counter-cultural to mainstream. Texas, as a school and football program, was always a beast, but it felt like the alternative to Austin’s grimey, dingey nature. Now the two feel one and the same. Still a good time, just not as good as it used to be.
9. South Carolina
In the interest of full disclosure, I’ve never been to Williams-Brice Stadium on a game day. That’s part of why it’s smack in the middle of the list. The stadium is a bit out of the way, but not so far off campus that it’s a haul. And, oh, that campus. USC makes it high because between the town’s fun, the campus’ beauty, and everything I’ve been told,
8. Auburn
‘Overrated’ does not equal ‘bad.’ Auburn is overrated. Yes, Toomer’s Corner. Yes, an eagle flight. Yes, it’s big. When the Tigers are good, Jordan-Hare is a delight. When the Tigers are bad, or even just mediocre, the charm of the town turns sour, leaving Auburn right smack in the middle of the SEC for this list.
7. Ole Miss
Ole Miss is Oxford. Oxford is Ole Miss. The two go hand-in-hand better than any town and any university on this list. The entire city gets up and out for the Rebels on Saturdays. It legitimately feels like a high-school football Friday night from the movies. Sure, the stadium needs a lot of work, but there’s nothing quite like The Grove pre-game.
6. Georgia
Something special happens when you watch a game between the hedges for the first time. Georgia isn’t the most renowned program in SEC history, but the Bulldogs are awfully close. In the last 20 years or so, Athens has proven a tough place for the opposition. Between the size of Sanford Stadium – it’s the biggest place in the country that holds less than 100,000 – and air around it pre-game, UGA is a personal favorite.
5. Florida
One of the first stadiums with a nationally recognized nickname, Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, has a definitive feel. Whether you watch Florida play at home on television or you’re lucky enough to catch a great game in person, few environments are as raucous while maintaining a particular aesthetic.
4. Texas A&M
The state of Texas doesn’t like this list. My old roommate will probably text me about how awful this particular placement is when he reads it. Kyle Field is special. Being fourth in the SEC makes you top 10 in the country, anyway. The 12th Man is one of the coolest traditions in the league, maybe the nation. And the various nods to the military provide even more memorable scenery. Oh, and, yes, it’s massive and loud.
3. Tennessee
Speaking of massive and loud, head to Knoxville. Even before fans arrive, Neyland Stadium intimidates. The orange-and-white visuals of the seating impress, and the cavern-like quality of the building really impresses. Tailgating around the stadium is packed and broad, and there’s plenty to do before the game starts. Once it begins? Prepare for a volume shock.
2. Alabama
If you’re a neutral observer to whatever game is taking place that Saturday, almost no college in town in America will provide as much fun before kickoff as Tuscaloosa. Roaming down University Avenue before Alabama kicks off an evening game, head inside Bryant-Denny Stadium and prepare to be overwhelmed. It’s a nightclub in all the best and none of the worst ways.
1. LSU
Baton Rouge may be the capital of Louisiana, but it’s home to LSU, first and foremost. The only state in the South that doesn’t have to compete with another team (apologies to Louisiana, UL-Monroe, La. Tech, et al), it feels like the world comes out for the Tigers on the Bayou. People as far the eyes can see. By the end of the night, you’ll forever associate the ringing in your ears with purple and gold.
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