And was this about games, or venues? They aren't necessarily the same (to me). In no particular order, based on tradition, fans, girls, pizzaz, and all things suited to today's TV markets, etc. .. My top 12: Gainesville, FL Baton Rouge, LA State Fair Grounds, TX Pasadena, CA Ann Arbor, MI Lincoln, NE South Bend, IN Austin, TX Eugene, OR Athens, GA Clemson, SC Tallahassee, FL
I would take Texas off in a heartbeat and put Ole Miss in there. It is, imho, an insult to actual real game day venues to put Texas on there. It's so spread out, it's relatively tame and the wishy washy nature of fans in and out of the stadium is well, it's not up to par with legit fan bases. Sorry, it just isn't and I too have been to many other venues. I am also a long time Horn fan who wishes it was different, but it ain't.
Anyone who puts Austin in the top 25 for "gameday atmosphere" hasn't been to a lot of college games elsewhere. Great town for nightlife, bars, food, etc. Not so much for gameday atmosphere.
I, of course, agree. And as said before I wish very much it wasn't true. I would love to be able to say it was a top tier and mean it. Maybe one day.
So is it hopeless or can we fix it. If we want to win titles, we need fan base with energy and enthusiasm that the team and coaching staff can feed off of. In other words " Texas Fight" should start with the folks in the bleachers.
As dumb as this may seem, it would take almost aggy like effort. Baby steps with something as simple and seemingly not important like burnt orange shirts. Either giving them away at the door to people wearing Purple, Blue, Green and who knows what else. That would maybe spark them a little once they got over being offended. Learning you don't yell and scream when your team is on offense. I would rather have people sitting down making a little noise than sitting and yelling at those standing. I don't want this to be a sitting v. standing argument and that has to end. You can make noise sitting so if it took that to get others into it, fine. I think if the fans knew just how much it helps the teams and how it pumps them up I hope they'd make more noise, a lot more noise. But there is something else. There is an electricity in the air, an excitement not present in Austin for most games. It's in Baton Rouge, it's in other places. Is it because our tailgates and areas are so widespread? I dunno. But it's not the same intensity.
Best places I have been personally, in order: Ole Miss (best tailgating ever, great town, awesome fans) LSU (Cajuns are great) tOSU (some bad fans, but stadium was awesome and intense) UW (partying on a yaht 40 yards from the goal post is cool; beautiful setting) Rose Bowl (the granddaddy) CU (great venue and awesome locale) aTm (stadium and town suck but fans are loud) Zona (fans tailgate better than you would expect; great sunsets over the mountains) Stanford (old stadium; have not been to new one; great area) I did not count Austin or RRS, but both are in the top 5 or so.
The main issue is our schedule. The fans get up for the big games. I would put us up there when a big game is in town like Ohio St. and soon to be USC and ND. Our biggest game every year is in Dallas which does take away quality from our home schedule although would never want to change the ou game. Win these quality non-conference games it carries over to the rest of them.
The article in the OP could have been better titled "Best rivalry atmospheres". It really had nothing to do with individual venues/cities.
What makes a game day atmosphere are the fans. Until Texas fans don't think they are entitled to winning the atmosphere will stay the same. The hunger and resulting atmosphere comes from hoping not expecting anything.
I love our game day atmosphere, it is better than most places. Could it be better yes, are the crowds the most intense no. Yes, I have been to a number of other locations, most of the Pac-10 or 12, most of the Big 10 err14, most of the Big 12 errr 10 and a few locations throughout the SEC. We may not be the rowdest fans but when you go to places like Tennessee and watch them play Marshall, nothing special, when you go to Notre Dame and watch them play Navy, nothing special, when you go to the Big House and watch them play Central Michigan, nothing special. The scene intensity picks up with the quality of the opponent. If our atmosphere was so bad why do we get 100,000/game? Where most of them are paying a premium ticket price and a Longhorn Foundation price? I like our atmosphere,nothing beats it at 6:00pm with the sun going down, the Texas Flag spread across the field and everyone's arms raised with the Hook Em singing the Eyes of Texas!!! Give me the chills everytime. I like doing my own tailgate thing where I don't have to do what everyone else is doing, I don't have to fight people for a spot or if someone takes my spot I have to readjust the whole day and let people know that we moved. Yes, the in game atmosphere could be better but hey, the activities around and before the game are very good, probably top 1 or 2 in the Big 12 where opposing fans don't have to feel threatned, which is absurd and not a quality atmosphere.
There's really nothing to compare it to with neither team having any sort of home-field advantage and with almost every play causing half the stadium to erupt while the other half deflates. It's really different from having a tiny pocket of opposing fans in a corner, or being in the tiny pocket of opposing fans in the corner for road games.
You have to be at a Texas-OU game to really understand why it is so special and should never change. I've been to countless games across the country over the years, and have never experienced anything quite like Texas-OU.