Urban Meyer reveals his top three toughest college football stadiums to play in as visitors

Across his nearly two decades as a collegiate head coach, Urban Meyer has coached in many of college football’s best road environments. Whether it was during his time at Florida playing at Bryant-Denny Stadium back in 2010 or traveling to Beaver Stadium with Ohio State in 2016, the former coach-turned-FOX Sports analyst has experienced it all.

It’s because of that wealth of experience that makes Meyer the perfect person to sound off on college football’s Top 3 toughest road environments.

But, before we get to Meyer’s Top 3 list, the former Big Ten and SEC head coach provided his Top 5 honorable mentions. In no particular order, Meyer cited Utah‘s Rice-Eccles Stadium, Alabama‘s Bryant-Denny Stadium, Auburn‘s Jordan Hare Stadium, Virginia Tech‘s Lane Stadium and South Carolina‘s Williams-Brice Stadium.

1. Penn State’s Beaver Stadium (during a White Out)

Saturday’s Top 10 showdown between Big Ten powers Oregon and Penn State will be the first “White Out” of the 2025 season as both ESPN’s College GameDay and FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff pregame shows will be onsite to preview the game. As the name indicates, Penn State fans coordinate for a White Out, providing Beaver Stadium a cascading sea of white throughout the stands that creates an unforgiving environment for opposing teams and fanbases in attendance.

Meyer: “No. 1, they choreograph with the students (for their) White Out (game), it’s ridiculous. I think it’s a seven-point flip with a veteran team (Saturday against No. 6 Oregon), and with a young team, it’d be more than that. That’s how big it is.”

2. Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

Known affectionately as “The Swamp,” the Gators’ home stadium is unquestionably one of college football’s most difficult road environments — if for no other reason that the oppressive heat that radiates throughout Gainesville in late August through the end of September. While the Gators haven’t given its home crowd much reason to cheer of late, Florida fans certainly known how to make things uncomfortable for any visiting fans and teams when the opportunity strikes.

Meyer: “I’ve never been there as a visitor, but I’ve been there as a home team and when you’re cooking … a night game against LSU, I remember, was the loudest I ever heard. I’d tell people it was like (having) a jet engine right behind me. I felt it, my clothes would be shaking.”

3. LSU’s Tiger Stadium (at night)

Last but certainly not least on Meyer’s list is known colloquially as the Death Valley, and it more than lives up to that nickname, especially during its famed night games. Just imagine 100,000 well-sauced LSU fans that have been imbibing since noon roaring “Tiger bait” for 3-plus hours. Add in the presence of a live Bengal tiger mascot named “Mike” in a mobile cage on wheels, as well as the “Callin’ Baton Rouge” sing-along at the start of the fourth quarter, the scene can send shivers down the spine.

Meyer: “LSU at night. What do they do with that Tiger, they poke him or something?”
Mark Ingram: “Yeah, they get him riled up and he be hitting the fence.”