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Where The Athletic ranks Neyland Stadium in top 25 of best college football stadiums

IMG_3593by: Grant Ramey11 hours agoGrantRamey
Neyland Stadium, Tennessee Athletics
KNOXVILLE, TN - October 19, 2024 - Cheerleaders run through the T during the game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, TN. Photo By Andrew Ferguson/Tennessee Athletics

Where The Athletic ranks Neyland Stadium in top 25 best college football stadiums 

Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium is the sixth-best college football stadium in the country, according to a poll from The Athletic. LSU’s Tiger Stadium was ranked No. 1, ahead of Penn State’s Beaver Stadium, Notre Dame Stadium, Ohio Stadium and Michigan Stadium. 

The Athletic’s ranking polled 28 staff writers, who ranked their top 10 favorite home college football stadiums and also named five honorable mentions, with points awarded to create the top 25.

Other SEC stadiums in the ranking were Texas A&M’s Kyle Field at No. 8, Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium at No. 11, Georgia’s Sanford Stadium at No. 12, Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at No. 13 and Auburn’s Jordan-Hare Stadium at No. 19.

Neyland creates ‘a visual that’s both intimidating and beautiful’

Neyland didn’t receive any first-place votes, but received 23 top-10 votes and garnered 131 total points. LSU’s Tiger Stadium got 14 first-place votes, 27 top-10 votes and 274 total points. 

“Neyland is my Roman Empire,” The Athletic’s Seth Emerson wrote. “I’ve never been to the Coliseum in Rome, or what’s left of it, but being inside Tennessee’s century-old stadium makes me feel like that’s what it would have been like. Massive, circular and enclosed, creating a visual that’s both intimidating and beautiful.”

Josh Heupel is 28-5 at Neyland Stadium as Tennessee’s head coach since 2021. Georgia is the only team to win in Knoxville against the Vols since 2022. 

Tennessee was a perfect 7-0 at home in 2022 and 2024, lost to Georgia this season and in 2023 and 2021. Ole Miss and Pitt also won at Neyland in 2021, the first season under Heupel.

The Vols, who are looking for a return to the College Football Playoff, need to win out over the final four game of season, with three games at home. 

Up Next: No. 14 Tennessee vs. No. 17 Oklahoma

No. 14 Tennessee (6-2, 3-2 SEC) hosts No. 17 Oklahoma (6-2, 2-2) on Saturday night (7:30 Eastern Time, ABC) and has home dates left against New Mexico State (November 15) and No. 9 Vanderbilt (November 29). The only road game left is at Florida on November 22.

“Then-Georgia guard Tate Ratledge said a couple of years ago that Neyland was the best stadium in the SEC because of its design,” Emerson wrote for The Athletic. “Three levels on top of each other in an uninterrupted circle. 

“The SEC has many great atmospheres because, hello, it’s the SEC. But as far as a pure venue to be inside and see a game — whether it was big-time football or a chariot race — give me Neyland.”