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Editor’s note: This article is part of our College Football Stadium Rankings series, highlighting the most interesting venues across the country.
By Seth Emerson, Mitch Light, Stewart Mandel and Joe Rexrode
They called it the Earthquake Game: Midway through the 1988 season, LSU beat Auburn on a fourth-down pass, and the reaction inside Tiger Stadium was so thunderous that the next morning an LSU seismologist and student worker discovered that it registered Richter-scale movement on a seismograph installed in a nearby building.
That story alone may symbolize the majesty and passion of SEC stadiums. But plenty of others abound in the conference where … well, you know the four-word motto.
By seating capacity, the SEC is home to five of the 10 biggest stadiums in the world, and eight of the top 25. In overall quality — as voted on by The Athletic staff — it landed seven of the top 20, with four others receiving votes. Here, four of our writers weigh in on their favorite SEC stadiums, as well as their most underrated and overrated, and favorite aspects — and least favorite — of certain places.
What is your favorite SEC stadium?
Emerson: It’s Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium, so much so that I wrote the blurb for our national rankings. But rather than repeat myself, let me extol the virtues of Georgia’s Sanford Stadium, where I’ve covered many a game. It’s not just the famous hedges. The stadium being built in a mini-valley creates a nice effect, allowing you to see campus buildings from basically anywhere. The bridge on the west side of the stadium is a nice visual. And there’s a creek that runs under one side of the stadium: Tanyard Creek, which has an interesting history.
Mandel: LSU’s Tiger Stadium is my favorite place in the country to cover a college football game. (And no, I was not at Brian Kelly’s last game.) I tell people it’s like setting foot in a different country, the culture is so unique. For one thing, they’re not serving burgers and hot dogs at the tailgates; it’s boudin balls and gumbo. Also, you pass a live tiger in his habitat on the way from the parking lot to the stadium. And the accents, oh, the accents. Then comes kickoff, and it’s an ear-splitting 100,000 people, to the point I could not hear the person 6 inches to my right in the press box. Just electric.
Rexrode: I went with Sanford Stadium and wrote the blurb on that, so let me switch spots with Seth and talk Neyland Stadium. I have not encountered more outdoor duress on ears than I did during stretches of Tennessee wins over Alabama in 2022 and Florida in 2016. And I was taking it in from an enclosed press box in the clouds. As Seth wrote, the Roman Coliseum comes to mind when you’re in Neyland, which makes it the closest thing the SEC has to the Big Ten’s best venue, Ohio Stadium. It’s a grand experience, starting with the walk along the adjoining Tennessee River, where the “Vol Navy” sets the standard for aquatic tailgating.
Light: There are several ways I could go. I voted LSU No. 1 in our staff survey. For me, a night game at Tiger Stadium is the best setting in college football. There’s just a different vibe about the place. But I have a unique perspective on this since I spent seven years as the sideline reporter for the Vanderbilt radio network. My favorite place in that role was The Swamp in Gainesville. The fans are right on top of you — the student section is right behind the visitors bench — and there is a festive atmosphere (when the Gators are winning). Also, the weather is almost great late in the season.
What is the most underrated SEC stadium?
Mandel: Mississippi State. It may be half the size of some others, but you would never know it from the decibel level. Those cowbells are no joke. They run a PSA on the scoreboard reminding everyone of the rules, and they follow them to the nanosecond — those things stop clanging only when the center is over the ball, ready to snap.
Rexrode: We don’t have many options on this — most of the stadiums in the SEC are rated. So let me throw Vanderbilt Stadium at you. Sorry, “FirstBank Stadium.” I would not have proposed this before 2025. I would have laughed at the thought. But check it out now. Yes, some of the transformation has to do with a dream season and unprecedented excitement around the program. But the stadium is now enclosed on both sides with luxury seating options as part of a massive facilities upgrade, and it feels totally different apart from the product. The setting has always been tremendous.
Light: A few years ago, the answer would have been Williams-Brice Stadium at South Carolina. But that place has been getting its proper due of late. So I’ll go with Kroger Field in Lexington. Basketball is obviously king at Kentucky, but Wildcats fans also love their football. And when UK is good, that is a fun place to watch a game. The stadium isn’t massive (capacity 61,000), but it’s big enough, and it can get very loud. And it’s the opposite of Gainesville — the weather has been brutal almost every time I’ve been, which gives it a true “November football” feel.
Emerson: Filing a complaint with Mitch for stealing my thunder. Kentucky’s stadium still often gets overlooked because national media types haven’t had much reason to visit, but it’s a gem. I’ve been there when it gets really loud, and the tailgate scene will also surprise anyone who thinks this is a basketball-and-nothing-else fan base. And while Kroger Field isn’t small, it’s not so big that there are bad seats. The sight lines are good, my friends who have sat in the bleachers report.
What is the most overrated SEC stadium?
Emerson: This comes with an asterisk because I don’t know that many talk reverently about Texas’ Darrell K Royal-Memorial Stadium. My first foray there was last year, and I was struck how small it seemed, despite the 100,000-plus capacity, and not in a great way. It just didn’t awe me. That’s not to say I wouldn’t go back to Austin, one of America’s great cities. The Longhorns have a lot going for them, but the stadium itself is just kind of … eh.
Mandel: Is there such a thing? I’m going to say Oklahoma. For all the great history at that program and all the big games the Sooners have won, there’s nothing particularly distinctive about that stadium. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great atmosphere, just not as unique as Death Valley, The Swamp, Bryant-Denny and others.
Rexrode: This will not be taken well, but here goes anyway: LSU’s Tiger Stadium in the daylight. Three key words there. Very, very important words. Full disclosure, I have not covered a night game in Baton Rouge, but I have no doubt it’s as amazing as everyone says. I covered one day game, but a big one in 2022 with No. 8 Tennessee visiting Jayden Daniels and the No. 25 Tigers. And it was quite bland, actually. Bland is a word that should never be applied to anything in Baton Rouge.
Light: This is tough because most of the venues with a good reputation are really cool for a big game. I’ll say Vaught-Hemingway at Ole Miss. The game-day vibe in Oxford is great — The Grove is not underrated — but there is nothing special about the actual stadium.
Superlatives
Best setting: Neyland Stadium, Tennessee. It sits on the banks of the Tennessee River and offers fans the opportunity to “sailgate” before and after games. For those not fortunate enough to boat to the game, it’s still a really cool setting. — Light
Most annoying source of noise: Davis Wade Stadium, Mississippi State. We have to give some love to the cowbells. They can create such an awful racket when the Bulldogs do something good, Christopher Walken might even ask them to tone it down a bit. But like an especially objectionable goal song in the NHL, the idea is to grate on the opponent’s nerves. — Rexrode
Best food: Tiger Stadium, LSU. It’s not even close. The Cajun delicacies on display are unrivaled in the college football universe. Wisconsin brats? Crab-stuffed pretzels at Maryland? Enormous beef ribs in Texas? Pffft. Make way for the crawfish etouffee. And yes, this is absolutely pandering after daring to say a negative word about Tiger Stadium. — Rexrode
Worst press box: Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn. Because of the view. While many stadiums are pushing the press to corners of the stadium, Auburn went full-tilt to behind an end zone, so when action is happening from midfield to the opposite end zone, those in the press box — including visiting radio announcers — depend on the television view. — Emerson
Most intimidating: Williams-Brice Stadium, South Carolina. There has only been one time I’ve covered a big game that I thought would be close, then decided it wouldn’t based on the game day atmosphere: when Georgia went to South Carolina in 2012, a matchup of unbeaten, top-10 teams. As kickoff arrived, the press box was shaking, not for the first time, but it was also so loud I turned to the person next to me and said: