Making a college football bucket list? Check out these 30 games, stadiums and events every fan should experience.
Football is the most popular sport in America, and for many fans, college football is the best version of it.
College football holds a special place in the hearts of its fans. The passion one feels for his or her alma mater, or home state, is often greater than the passion one feels for a professional team. The love for a school – a place – runs deeper than a pro franchise that can (and often does) pick up and move, or at least fills its roster with similar transients.
In most cases, players don’t choose where they play professionally. They are drafted there, or acquired via trade. Only free agents have the ability to pick and choose a destination, but college football players always have a say in the matter, even if they transfer. Therefore, the connection between fans and players is often stronger at the college level.
That connection often makes us fans of college football itself, even if we are diehard fans of a particular college or university. Therefore, college football fans often have a true appreciation for the things that make each program special. The unique traditions schools have created outside of the games themselves, in many cases dating back more than a century, that still show up every fall Saturday. Many fans hope to experience those traditions up close and personal, regardless of the ties to that particular city, state, or team.
As a result, fans create college football bucket lists, and plan road trips or schedule vacations to experience those great traditions before they die.
With that in mind, we’ve selected 30 of the best bucket list items college football fans need to experience. As we count down, the 30 events aren’t necessarily ranked in terms of which are most important. Instead, the list is grouped to include venues of historical significance, followed by exotic locales, legendary pre-game and in-game traditions, and must-see rivalry games.
Everyone has a different opinion, and there are many other worthy options that wouldn’t fit on this list, but this is a great place to start planning the journey.
30. College Football Hall of Fame
What better place to begin our bucket list than with the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta?
The National Football Foundation began the Hall of Fame in 1951, but there was a long and winding road between honoring those early players and coaches and the big, beautiful museum open to the public today.
The NFF originally hoped to put an official museum in New Brunswick, New Jersey, where the first football game was played in 1869, but settled for a site in Kings Mull, Ohio, which opened in 1978. A new museum opened in South Bend, Indiana near the campus of the University of Notre Dame, in 1995, but the Hall of Fame was relocated to downtown Atlanta in 2012.
Built near Centennial Olympic Park and the Georgia Dome in downtown Atlanta, the 95,000 square foot facility includes three floors of galleries, memorabilia and interactive exhibits, as well as an indoor football field and a feature wall that displays 750 college football helmets. Nearly 1,000 players have been inducted into the Hall, which the museum calculates is fewer than 0.02 percent of those that have played the game at the collegiate level.
While in Atlanta, visitors have an opportunity to visit Grant Field at Bobby Dodd Stadium, home of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and one of the oldest football stadiums still in use today. Fans can also see one of the newest: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the new home of the Atlanta Falcons, which will also host the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic in September and the SEC Championship Game in December. Plus, the University of Georgia and 92,746-seat Sanford Stadium is about 70 miles up the road. All are worthy destinations.
29. The Birthplace of College Football
The Hall of Fame couldn’t make it to New Brunswick, but diehard college football fans should consider adding The Birthplace of College Football to their bucket list.
High Point Solutions Stadium isn’t one of the most well known venues in college football. Though it holds 52,454 seats, it’s rarely sold out, even when the best teams in the Big Ten visit. However, it marks arguably the most important football game ever played: the first one.
Rugby-type games popped up all over the Northeast in the late 19th Century, and groups of students played on campus quads throughout the region. On Nov. 6. 1869, perhaps tired of playing against friends and classmates, students from the College of New Jersey, now known as Princeton, travelled by train to New Brunswick to challenge a group of students from Rutgers College.
With 25 players per side, without the ability to pick up and run with the ball, and with the squads playing for goals instead of touchdowns, Rutgers won 6-4. Princeton won the rematch the following week.
The practice of one school traveling to another caught on, and many of the early adopters, including Rutgers, Princeton, Columbia, Harvard and Yale began to meet to set standard rules for the game. Over time, they succeeded, and football grew into America’s most popular sport.
While many of Rutgers’ first football opponents eventually deemphasized football, the Scarlet Knights continue to play the game at its highest level, moving to the Big Ten Conference in 2014. Though the move has yet to pay off in terms of wins and losses, Rutgers will forever be the Birthplace of College Football, and worth a trip.
28. “… Here’s a toast to dear old Penn”
Penn might be off the college football radar of most casual fans because the Quakers compete at the FCS level. Even among those in the know, Penn is often overshadowed by its Ivy League rivals at Harvard and Yale in terms of huge success in the early days of the sport as well as the role each university played in terms of helping the game evolve into the one we know and love today.
However, Penn has won a staggering 839 games since it began playing football in 1895, earned a trip to the third Rose Bowl in 1916, and finished seven seasons ranked in the Top 20 of the final Associated Press poll, including a No. 7 finish in 1947. The Quakers also negotiated a full season contract with ABC to broadcast every game during the 1950 season, which led to a complete overhaul of college football broadcast rights.
No Ivy League school has more league titles than Penn (18), and the Quakers also have more outright championships (13) and undefeated league seasons (8) than any other Ivy school. Penn is also the two time defending Ivy League champion.
The university also has a fun in-game tradition worth seeing. The Penn Band, also known as “The Huge, the Enormous, the Well-Endowed, Undefeated, Ivy-League Champion, University of Pennsylvania Oxymoronic Fighting Quaker Marching Band,” dates back to 1897, making it one of the oldest in college football. And, as is tradition, the band plays “Drink a Highball” at the end of the third quarter:
"“Drink a highball at nightfall, be good fellows while you may. For tomorrow may bring sorrow, so tonight let’s all be gay. Tell the story of glory of Pennsylvania; Drink a highball and be jolly; here’s a toast to dear old Penn.”"
Decades ago, those in attendance at Franklin Field would actually toast one another with a cocktail at the end of the song. However, alcohol was eventually barred from the stadium. An enterprising lot, Penn students adapted the tradition as literally as possible and the practice of tossing toasted bread onto the field was born.
Franklin Field, built in 1895, is worth a trip on its own, though the 52,958-seat venue is rarely full these days. To get the best taste of a big-time contest, see a game against annual title contender Harvard.
27. The Game: Harvard vs. Yale
You may know another major college football rivalry as “The Game,” but the annual end of season contest between Harvard and Yale is nearly as intense for those on the field and in the stands. Whether hosted at Harvard Stadium or the Yale Bowl, and whether or not either the Crimson or Bulldogs are still in the running for the Ivy League title (though often at least one will be), expect a full crowd – one of the biggest of the year at the FCS level. Also expect innovative chants by the two students sections, and potentially a prank or two carried out by students from MIT.
Though the game dates back to 1875, and has been played every year since 1897, with the exception of 1917-18 and 1943-44 for World War I and World War II, respectively, it is not the oldest in college football – or even the Ivy League. Yale has played Princeton 139 times, and Harvard 133.
Nevertheless, the two oldest universities in the United States actually invented the concept of intercollegiate competition in this country, which gives the pair bragging rights as the oldest rivals in college sports. Harvard and Yale first met for the Harvard-Yale Boat Race in New London, CT in 1852. The first edition of The Race was held 17 years before the first college football game and 23 years before Harvard and Yale met on the gridiron.
Yale holds a 66-59-8 lead in the all-time series, and ended a nine-year Harvard winning streak with a 21-14 win in Cambridge in 2016.
26. The Rivalry: Lehigh-Lafayette
Yale-Princeton and the Game rank No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, in college football history in terms of most played rivalries. The most played rivalry in the history of the sport, simply known as The Rivalry, between Lafayette and Lehigh.
The two Pennsylvania schools first met in 1884 and have played 152 times since, including at least once in every year since the first game, a 50-0 Lafayette victory. Prior to the beginning of the 20th Century, Lehigh and Lafayette usually played twice a season. The Leopards hold a 78-69-5 edge in the all-time series, through the Mountain Hawks have won the last two meetings.
The games have almost always been held on the campus of the two schools in Easton and Bethlehem, respectively, and are traditionally scheduled for the Saturday before Thanksgiving. However, the last Lafayette win, a 27-7 victory in 2014, was the 150th in the series and held at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx. A crowd of 48,256 people gathered to watch, which broke the attendance record for the contest. The only other non-campus meeting occurred in 1891, when Lehigh picked up a 16-2 win in Wilkes-Barre.
In addition to football, The Rivalry extends to the rest of the varsity sports at the two schools. Created in 1968, the All Sports Trophy is awarded annually to the college that wins the most head-to-head meetings. Lehigh has a 34-2-6 lead in the all-time competition among men’s teams, though the Lafayette women hold a 12-10 edge.
25. Aloha Stadium, Hawaii
You probably didn’t expect this one, but if you stop to think about it, it makes perfect sense. What better place to see a college football game than the Pacific island paradise of Hawaii?
Sure, Aloha Stadium isn’t the state-of-the-art facility it was when it opened in 1975. And yes, the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors seldom sell out the 50,000-seat venue, meaning games don’t quite carry the intense atmosphere you’d find in the SEC, Big Ten or Big 12. However, located just west of Honolulu with ‘Aiea Bay in the background, there are few better places to spend a Saturday afternoon.
It’s also worth noting the added benefit of being in the Hawaii-Aleutian Time Zone, six hours behind the Eastern Time Zone, meaning a diehard football fan can often watch every other game on the Saturday docket before the Rainbow Warriors kick off for a night game.
There’s also an opportunity to see some pretty good football at Aloha Stadium. Hawaii has a 524-391-26 all-time record, and has been to 11 bowl games. The Rainbow Warriors have won four conference championships, and occasionally host big-name opponents. Notre Dame and Michigan are among the blueblood programs to travel to the islands.
In addition to four Mountain West opponents each year, the Rainbow Warriors host rival BYU in the season finale in 2017. Hawaii has future home games scheduled against Navy (2018), Arizona (2019 and 2025), Oregon State (2019), Army (2019 and 2024), Vanderbilt (2022), Wisconsin (2024) and Oregon (2024). Also, Aloha Stadium hosts the Hawai’i Bowl each year, as it has since 2002. Last season, the Rainbow Warriors won the Hawai’i Bowl, beating Middle Tennessee 52-35 for its sixth bowl win in 11 tries.
24. The Blue: Boise State’s Albertsons Stadium
Perhaps a little more on the radar given the program’s great success over the past two decades, Boise State’s 34,387-seat Albertsons Stadium (previously known as Bronco Stadium) is one of the most well known venues among non-power conferences programs for the (once) unique blue turf.
A successful small college football program for the majority of its existence, Boise State won a Junior College national championship in 1958 and captured the Division I-A crown in 1980, both of which occurred before installing the trademark blue turf. The Broncos first played on The Blue, also nicknamed “Smurf Turf” in 1986, when the stadium capacity was just 20,000. In 1994, the season before the program transitioned to the Division I-A level, Boise State marched to the National Championship Game. The stadium was expanded to 30,000 for the move up, and has been expanded three times since, most recently in 2012, to its current capacity.
Other college football programs across the country have chosen to follow Boise State’s lead and adopt a non-green playing surface. The University of New Haven Chargers began playing on a blue field when it re-launched its football program in 2009, and FBS power Eastern Washington installed red turf at Roos Field in 2010, earning the nickname The Inferno. Central Arkansas, Lindenwood University and Eastern Michigan (whose gray playing surface is the only other non-green field at the FBS level) all installed non-traditional turf.
Don’t expect the NFL to follow suit, however. In 2011, the league mandated all playing surfaces must be green, citing Boise State in the rule.
23. The Grove at Ole Miss
Tailgating wasn’t invented in Oxford, but the good folks at Ole Miss perfected it.
Lined by massive oak, elm and magnolia trees, and surrounded by academic buildings, The Grove is a large grassy area at the center of campus at the University of Mississippi. There, Rebels fans and visitors congregate prior to football games in order to spend time with one another, eat massive spreads of food – often in a tent, and sometimes under a chandelier – and enjoy an ice cold sweet tea – or often something stronger.
Originally a pregame meeting spot for campus fraternities and sororities, Rebels fans now flock to The Grove at 9 PM on the Friday night prior to a Saturday kickoff to claim the perfect spot. Vehicles are no longer allowed in The Grove, which adds to the intimate family atmosphere. The Rebels also spend time in The Grove prior to games, completing the Walk of Champions on their way to the field.
Though nearby Vaught-Hemingway Stadium has a capacity of 64,038, crowds of more than 100,000 are regularly estimated for big games in Oxford, and as a result, the party outside often extends well after the game begins. And it goes on long after the final whistle blows. As the saying goes in Oxford, “we may not win every game, but we’ve never lost a party.”
There’s a reason why, according to the official Ole Miss website, Sports Illustrated ranked Ole Miss “the nation’s No. 1 tailgating school,” and The Sporting News tabbed The Grove “the Holy Grail of tailgating sites.”
22. Falcon Stadium, Air Force
Because of the expansiveness of the western United States, and the fact that most college football programs between Texas and the West Coast don’t play in Power Five conferences, many college football fans overlook some of the greatest venues in the sport. Watching an Air Force Falcons game at Falcon Stadium should be on every fan’s college football bucket list.
Located more than 6,621 feet above sea level, Falcon Stadium is one of the highest in the nation. Surrounded by the Rocky Mountains, it is also offers one of the most beautiful sights in the sport. Add the traditional flyovers by Air Force aircraft, and the aura surrounding the United States Air Force Academy as one of the three service academies that compete for the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy, and it’s an awe-inspiring experience.
There’s also a pretty good chance the football will be fun to watch as well. Air Force has a 373-311-12 record since the program began in 1955, and the Falcons have qualified for 26 bowl games in their history. Air Force has finished in the Top 25 of the AP Poll six times, as high as No. 6 in 1958, and climbing as high as No. 4 during a 12-1 1985 season. For the best possible experience, schedule a trip to see the Falcons host Army or Navy.
When visiting Colorado Springs, fans can cross a few other items off their non-college football bucket list. Among the most popular things to do is ride the cog railway at Pike’s Peak – a “fourteener” that stands 14,115 feet high – and the highest summit in the Rocky Mountains’ southern Front Range. The train is just 12 miles from downtown Colorado Springs, and goes to the summit in summer.
21. Ralphie’s Run, Folsom Field
Drive 85 miles north on Interstate 25, through Denver and on to Boulder, and you’ll reach the campus of the University of Colorado in Boulder. Though the Colorado Buffaloes fell on hard times in the 2000s, the program is on the rise following a 10-4 season in 2016, which was the first winning record in more than a decade, included the first bowl game appearance for the program since 2007, and concluded with the first Top 20 ranking for the team since 2002.
But, even if the Buffs fail to repeat their strong performance in 2017 or beyond, fans should make the trip to Folsom Field for one of the best on-field pre-game traditions in college football: Ralphie’s Run.
Ralphie V, a female live bison mascot for the school, runs onto the field prior to Colorado home football games with the assistance of “Ralphie Handlers,” which is a varsity team at the school. Five Handlers orchestrate each run. Ralphie rarely makes the trip to away games, but travelled for a game against Georgia in 2006, and has made visits to bowl games as well.
Also, if one were to make the trip to the Air Force Academy and see the Buffs in back-to-back weekends, there are plenty of things to do in the interim. Golden, the home of the Coors Brewery and the Colorado School of Mines (whose former head football coach Bob Stitt turned into an innovative Division II power) is located roughly 20 miles south of Boulder, and due west from Denver. It’s also close to Rocky Mountain National Park.
20. “Enter Sandman,” Lane Stadium
Opened in 1965, Lane Stadium in Blacksburg began as a humble home for 35,050 Virginia Tech football fans. Recently independent after spending more than 40 years in the Southern Conference, the Hokies had played in just one bowl game prior to Lane Stadium’s construction – a loss in the 1946 Sun Bowl. There were several successful seasons in the past, including an 8-0-1 record in 1954, which earned the Hokies their one and only final ranking in the AP Top 20 (No. 16), but Virginia Tech was far from a national brand.
Jerry Claiborne led the Hokies to two Liberty Bowls after Lane Stadium was christened. Bill Dooley coached Virginia Tech to seven straight winning seasons from 1980-86, during which Lane Stadium was first expanded, and the program went to three bowls, including the first win in school history in the 1986 Peach Bowl.
But Virginia Tech reached its greatest heights after the school hired Frank Beamer. The former Virginia Tech defensive back overcame a slow start as head coach to lead the Hokies to 23 consecutive bowl games, seven conference championships and 13 10-win seasons.
With the program’s success under Beamer, Virginia Tech felt the need to expand Lane Stadium in 1999, 2000, 2002 and 2004, to its current capacity of 66,233. And all 66,233 stand, jump and scream when Metallica’s hit song “Enter Sandman” plays over the stadium loudspeakers before the Hokies take the field.
The tradition began in 2000, and when Virginia Tech hosts a big game on a Saturday (or Thursday) night, there are few entrances that create a more electric atmosphere.
19. “Jump Around,” Camp Randall Stadium
Few would have believed that a 1992 song by one-hit wonder House of Pain would evolve into one of the best-known college football traditions around today. But, because of the popularity of “Jump Around” throughout the 1990s, students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison started incorporating it into sporting events and parties throughout the decade. In 1998, the song was played over the loudspeakers at Camp Randall Stadium prior to the beginning of the fourth quarter in a game against Purdue – a practice that became tradition.
The 1998 season was one of the best in Badgers football history. Wisconsin finished the year 11-1, won the Rose Bowl and finished ranked No. 6 in the nation. It was just the second time since 1962 the Badgers played in the Rose Bowl and finished a season ranked in the final AP Poll. Since, the Badgers have played in three Rose Bowls and have become a fixture in the Top 25, finishing ranked in 13 of the past 19 seasons. The Badgers have also won 10 or more games 10 times since 1998, after having done so just once previously, in 1993.
A modern day sports arena anthem, “Jump Around” can commonly be heard at pro and college sporting events across the country – and even the world. Among its famous uses are for the “Rally Monkey” at Los Angeles Angels games at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, after New England Patriots wins at Gillette Stadium, and following half time at the Emirates Stadium for Arsenal Football Club matches.
18. “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” West Virginia
Songs are a regular part of the college football experience, both in terms of fight songs and halftime shows played by the school bands in attendance, or through popular music played on stadium loudspeakers. Some, like “Jump Around,” pump up the crowd. Others invoke pride in a city, community, state or university.
John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” falls into the second category. Written by Bill Danoff, Taffy Nivert Danoff and Denver – a New Mexico native that grew up in Arizona, Alabama and Texas, who studied at Texas Tech – struck a cord in West Virginia after it was recorded in 1971. From the chorus:
"“Country roads, take me home To the place I belong. West Virginia, mountain mama, Take me home, country roads.”"
The song has been played before every Mountaineer home football games since 1972, played by the Pride of West Virginia marching band as part of the pregame show. It has long been the official University theme song, and students sign the song at the New Student Welcome as part of their first weekend on campus and at Commencement after graduating.
Denver performed “Take Me Home, Country Roads” at Milan Puskar Stadium before a game in 1980, and the song became one of the official state songs when the West Virginia legislature passed a resolution in 2014. Fans also stand and sing along to the tune after wins (including basketball wins, when the singing can also be heard rushing the court).
Singing “Country Roads” is a unique college football tradition fans must see to understand, and traveling to Morgantown to do it should be part of everyone’s college football bucket list.
17. Midnight Yell, Texas A&M
Speaking of longstanding traditions you need to see to believe, Texas A&M’s Yell Practice dates to 1913, and the Midnight Yell has been part of college football since 1931, according to the university’s official history on the subject, though the date has been debated.
As the story goes, the first Midnight Yell occurred before a game with archrival Texas. Two freshmen cadets (Texas A&M was an all-male military academy until the 1960s), requested a late-night practice at the campus YMCA building on the eve of the game against the Longhorns. The idea was a hit and a tradition was born.
Nowadays, on Friday nights prior to Saturday football games, tens of thousands of Aggies fans, students and visitors gather at Kyle Field to follow the Yell Leaders (an elected group of five) and the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band. The festivities include practicing traditional yells intended to motivate the Aggies on the field, or to poke fun at the opponent. During a trip to College Station in October, 2016, for Yell Practice prior to the Aggies undefeated Top 10 matchup against Tennessee, Chuck Culpepper of The Washington Post estimated 40,000 fans in attendance.
One of many unique traditions in Aggieland, Yell Practice isn’t just a home game activity. It occurs two days prior to road games as well, though in a smaller setting on campus.
Texas is arguably the most passionate football state in America, and the Aggies have a passionate fanbase willing to start one of their favorite traditions at midnight the day before a game. However, the Aggies know how to work quickly, and typically Yell Practice concludes around 12:30. It’s only practice after all, the most yelling occurs the next day.
16. Rolling Toomer’s Corner
Some of college football’s greatest traditions occur outside far away from the bright lights of the stadium. One of the best, the rolling of the live oak trees on the corner of College Street and Magnolia Avenue in Auburn, typically occurs under the cover of darkness after big Tigers football victories.
The intersection marks the edge of the Auburn University campus and downtown Auburn, and is named after the Toomer’s Drugs store, which dated back to 1896. Pro tip: get a lemonade at Toomer’s before you leave town.
Legend has it the employees at Toomer’s threw ticker tape onto the power lines near the store in celebration of the news of Auburn away wins. It makes sense, since in the days before television, the drugstore apparently had the only telegraph in town and fans would congregate there to cheer on the Tigers.
However, the origins of the modern tradition rolling the trees (and just about everything else in the area) with toilet paper is hard to nail down. Some attribute the first roll to Pat Sullivan’s 1971 Heisman Trophy win, though other claim it started the following season after he incredible “Punt, Bama, Punt” victory, an improbable 17-16 comeback win that included two blocked punt returns for touchdown in the final six minutes of the game.
A symbol of the university itself, the Toomer’s Oaks hold a special place in the heart of Auburn fans. A target of vandalism in 2010, the poisoned oaks were removed in 2013 and replaced in 2015 – though the university asked fans to refrain from rolling the famous trees until the fall of 2016.
15. Heisman Trophy Gala
Named for legendary coach John Heisman and given annually every year since 1935, the Heisman Memorial Trophy is college football’s top individual honor. Originally awarded to the best player east of the Mississippi River, the award was extended to include all players nationwide in 1936, and 82 of the greatest players in the history of the sport have been honored.
The bronze Heisman Trophy statue is the most iconic trophy in the sport, and the ceremony to name its winner has grown into an event all its own. Presented by the Downtown Athletic Club in New York from 1935-2001, damage from the September 11 terrorist attacks forced several moves in location, the Heisman Trophy Trust now honors its recipient, as well as the selected finalists, in the PlayStation Theater in Times Square.
Nationally televised since 1977, ESPN has broadcasted the Heisman Trophy ceremony every year since 1994. The event is usually held at the end of the regular season, either on the first or second Saturday in December, when all contests have been played (with the Army-Navy Game a recent exception) in order for the voters to best evaluate the full body of work of every candidate.
Though spots are limited, in part because the event celebrates all living Heisman winners, who are among those that vote for the award each year, tickets to the Heisman Trophy Gala are typically available to the public. Scoring a seat to an event with the greatest college football players of all-time would certainly qualify as a bucket list item.
14. Husky Harbor, Washington
All across the country, students often roll out of bed on a college football Saturday, dress for the day and walk to their favorite tailgate spot on campus.
For many fans coming from out of town, it’s typical to roll up to a tailgate in an RV, or more commonly, a car.
Trains used to be common, especially in the Northeast, and the old-fashioned mass transportation often brought players as well as fans, family and students to away games.
However, in some rare instances, fans travel to the stadium by boat. Such is the case at Husky Harbor in Seattle, and for many of the defending Pac-12 champion Washington Huskies, there’s no better way to prepare for a big college football game. Especially when you consider the views of the surrounding Olympic and Cascade Mountains, it’s no wonder an estimated 8,000 fans choose to spend their pregame hours on the water on a weekly basis.
Also called “sailgating,” Husky Harbor has room for 150 private boats and season-long and per-game permits are available to the public. The University offers a shuttle service to transport sailgaters to the dock, and several companies offer chartered cruises for up to 500 people.
Fans have travelled to Husky Stadium by boat since it was built in 1920, and did so for roughly 40 years before any docks were built close to the facility. The school’s rowing team is said to have offered rides to shore for tips – an enterprising fundraiser to say the least.
13. Vol Navy, Tennessee
Of course, another stadium across the country is also accessible by boat. While a visit to Neyland Stadium in Knoxville is a college football bucket list item in itself, doing so as a member of the Vol Navy would be the cherry on top of the experience.
Built on the banks of the Tennessee River in 1921, Shields-Watkins Field has an opening capacity of 3,200. After more than a dozen renovations and a name change, Neyland Stadium (named for former coach Robert Neyland) now seats 102,455 fans and has hosted up to 109,061 for a football game. The stadium is currently the fifth largest in the nation, and ranks sixth in the world.
Of the many great traditions on display at the grand facility, including the orange and white checkered end zones and players running through the Power T, getting to the game via boat is one of the best.
It’s also pretty rare when you consider more than 100,000 people commonly flock to Tennessee home football games, but only 200-250 boats travel to the game on game day. If an opportunity arises, it’s a must.
The tradition started in 1962 when longtime Tennessee radio broadcaster George Mooney famously chose to avoid game day traffic by navigating his boat from home to the stadium. The practice became more popular with fans and alumni, and today 50 or so boats dock near the stadium on Friday nights to get the best spots for an all-day sailgating affair Saturday.
12. Notre Dame
Wake up the echoes. The Golden Dome. Win one for The Gipper.
There’s no college football program in the country quite like Notre Dame. Millions of fans cheer for the Fighting Irish (while nearly as many cheer against them) all across the country. Whether you love or hate Notre Dame, a visit to South Bend is a must for any college football fan.
The history runs deep in South Bend, and the signs – including the literal Play Like a Champion Today sign to the more figurative, such as Touchdown Jesus – of college football royalty abound. Notre Dame has amassed 896 victories since it began playing football in 1887. The Irish have captured 11 national championships and played in 35 bowl games, and the program has produced seven Heisman Trophy winners and 97 consensus All-Americans. Being in the presence of such success can be awe inspiring for a diehard football fan, regardless of his or her allegiances.
Seeing a game at Notre Dame Stadium, with a capacity of 80,795, should be on every fan’s bucket list. And, since the Fighting Irish load their schedule with top programs, there’s a strong chance the game would include either a rival, such as USC, Michigan, Michigan State, Stanford Purdue, Boston College, or Navy, or because of the ties with the conference, an ACC power like Florida State, Miami or Clemson. Maybe circle September 9, 2017 when the Georgia Bulldogs travel to Notre Dame, or September 23, 2023 when Ohio State comes to town.
11. College GameDay
One of the great things about this entry is that it can happen anywhere. It’s easy to access (and free), and it happens every week, rain or shine.
The traveling college football road show, College GameDay, first ventured outside ESPN’s Bristol studies to get a closer look at No. 1 Florida State’s trip to South Bend to take on No. 2 Notre Dame in 1993. Since, it’s made a habit of broadcasting on location across the country, growing to six outdoor episodes in 1994, and expanding to every week of the regular season, as well as the Army-Navy Game, a conference championship contest, and two legs of the College Football Playoff, including the national title game.
Typically, the show chooses the location of the biggest game of the week, whether it is a top rivalry like the Iron Bowl or The Game (either Ohio State-Michigan or Harvard-Yale, it’s been to both) or a neutral site matchup, such as 2017’s kickoff between Alabama and Florida State in Atlanta.
GameDay has trekked to many exotic college football locales. Last year alone, the show broadcasted from Lambeau Field, the Battle at Bristol at Bristol Motor Speedway, Salt Lake City and Kalamazoo, Michigan. ESPN’s huge cast of characters has gone to FCS cities like Fargo and Harrisonburg, visited the U.S.S. San Diego, Wrigley Field, and FBS college towns of every shape and size.
And of course, a visit to College GameDay site could provide an opportunity to cross multiple items off your college football bucket list, having broadcasted from the site of almost every entry listed here.
10. War Eagle Flight, Auburn
This isn’t the first time Auburn makes the list and it won’t be the last. If one schedules his or her college football bucket list trip to the loveliest village on the plains just right, all three can be achieved in a single weekend.
Fans across the country know that “War Eagle” is the battle cry in Auburn, and there are several theories as to its origins. The most popular, and far-fetched, myth is a wounded eagle rescued from a Civil War battlefield, brought home to Auburn. As legend has it, the eagle escaped during an 1892 football game against Georgia, then circled the field before falling to its death after Auburn won.
Other stories include a 1913 pep rally, a 1914 football game against the Carlisle Indians, and Native American lore. Whatever the true origin, before every home game at Jordan-Hare Stadium, the team’s live golden eagle mascot, War Eagle VII, also known as Nova, flies free through the air around the stadium before landing on the field.
It’s a truly majestic experience for a college football fan – one that puts goosebumps on arms and makes the hair stand up on the backs of necks.
The program of raising live eagle mascots and training them to perform before games and at other events (War Eagle, VI, Tiger, saw action in the 2002 Winter Olympics), is part of a larger picture. The university’s role is to “promote wildlife conservation as a part of the education initiatives of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Southeastern Raptor Center,” according to the school’s official description.
9. Howard’s Rock and Running Down the Hill, Clemson
There are college football traditions that send chills down the spine of every fan in attendance, and few compare to the electricity in the stadium when the Clemson Tigers touch Howard’s Rock and run down “The Hill” onto the field at Memorial Stadium. It’s been called the most exciting 25 seconds in the sport.
Howard’s Rock was named for head coach Frank Howard, who took the job prior to the 1940 season. Howard from 165 games at Clemson through 1969, and guided the Tigers to six bowl games. He and the Tigers won seven outright conference championships – two in the Southern Conference, including an 11-0 1948 squad and five in the ACC – and Clemson finished the season ranked in the Top 20 of the AP Poll six times under his watch.
In addition to helping the Tigers earn national acclaim on the field, Howard played a huge role in shaping one of college football’s greatest traditions. As the story goes, a Clemson graduate and Howard’s friend, Samuel Columbus Jones, gave Howard a rock from Death Valley, California at some point in the 1960s. After years keeping it in his office, Howard allowed an administrator to take it in 1966, and the administrator, Gene Willimon, installed it in a prominent place in the east end zone atop the hill the players ran down from the locker room.
The rock became a motivational tool after the Tigers beat Virginia in the first game after its installation. Players began rubbing the rock before taking the field against Wake Forest in 1967, a game Clemson also won.
8. The Grand Daddy of Them All: The Rose Bowl Game
Some fans complain that there are too many bowl games (it’s a topic for another day, but simply, those fans are wrong). Well, there was a time when there was only one: The Rose Bowl.
First held in 1902 and originally known as the Tournament East-West football game, the Rose Bowl began the tradition of hosting college football bowl games on New Year’s Day. A crowd of 8,000 gathered in Pasadena to see a juggernaut Michigan squad beat Stanford 49-0, which caused the organizers of the event to shy away from holding a football game for the next 14 years.
Renamed the Rose Bowl, but with the East vs. West theme still in tact, current Ivy League member Brown traveled west to take on Washington State on Jan. 1, 1916. The first meeting between current Pac-12 and Big Ten opponents, which evolved into the traditional pairing, came after the 1920 season when Cal beat Ohio State 28-0.
In 1935, the numbers of bowl games began to grow. The Sun Bowl, Orange Bowl and Sugar Bowl all debuted that year, followed by the Cotton Bowl in 1937. More trickled in through the decades to our current total of 39 bowl games, six of which are tied to the College Football Playoff, including the national title game and two semifinals.
Because of the vast number of bowls today, and the low expectations for qualification, many bowls feature large numbers of empty seats. Therefore, they often lack the big-game atmosphere available at the older, often more important, bowl games. The Rose Bowl Game, which will serve as a national semifinal in 2017, is always packed, and always carried a great matchup of highly ranked teams. As a result, it’s a no-brainer for our bucket list.
7. Saturday night in Baton Rouge: Tiger Stadium
The SEC is full of huge stadiums with incredible game day atmospheres. Sanford Stadium at Georgia, The Swamp – Ben Hill Griffin Stadium – at Florida, Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, are all among the 12 largest in the nation. All are a great place to see a football game regardless of the matchup, or the time of day in which it’s held. However, night games in the SEC are special, and there’s no better place to spend a Saturday night than Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge.
No state embraces its largest university quite like Louisiana loves the LSU Tigers. As a result, 102,321 fans flock to the capital city on Saturdays (or several days earlier) to tailgate and scream “Geaux Tigers” all day prior to kickoff. Properly lubricated, the crowd is rowdier than usual after the sun goes down.
Nicknamed Death Valley, countless opposing players and coaches, as well as publications, polls and surveys have dubbed Saturday night in Tiger Stadium as the toughest venue in college football. It’s among the loudest in America, and given LSU’s place in the SEC West and annual games against the likes of Alabama, Auburn, and Mississippi State, as well as rivals Arkansas, Texas A&M, Ole Miss and Florida, several of the best games in any season are sure to be hosted there.
On a side note, when in Louisiana, carve out time to visit one of the greatest rivalries in football, the Bayou Classic between Grambling State and Southern in New Orleans. Seeing HBCU bands perform during the game and at halftime are a bucket list item all their own, and a special bit of college football tradition each fan should experience.
6. The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party
In some cases, holding a big-time college football game at a neutral site can put a damper on the atmosphere. Nine times out of 10, an on-campus game is preferable. However, there are a few exceptions, and one is the game formerly known as The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party, the rivalry game between the Georgia Bulldogs and Florida Gators hosted annually in Jacksonville.
Like the other great neutral rivalry games (and two follow on our list), the crowd at EverBank Field could be split evenly down the middle, one half in red and black and the other in blue and orange. Even better, all 67,246 seats are filled, and there’s a party going on non-stop from the Jacksonville Landing to St. Simon’s Island.
The series is an interesting one for many reasons. One is the disagreement surrounding how many games the two teams have actually played. According to the Bulldogs, the first meeting occurred in Macon, Georgia in 1904 – a 52-0 Georgia victory. Florida insists the game didn’t count because the University of Florida had yet to be formerly established by the state’s legislature. Therefore, the Gators insist the first meeting was a 37-0 Georgia win in Jacksonville.
Regardless of when the series actually started, the Gators didn’t win a game until 1928, and Georgia got off to a huge series lead. The Bulldogs won 24 (or 23) of the first 30 (or 29) meetings through 1951. Since, Florida has had the edge overall, posting a 38-26-1 edge, including a 21-6 record since 1990. It’s been a streaky series. From 1964-89, Georgia was 17-5-1 against the Gators.
5. Red River Rivalry: Oklahoma vs. Texas
Another great neutral site rivalry game worthy of a spot on our college football bucket list, the Red River Showdown between the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners, held annually at the Cotton Bowl during the State Fair of Texas.
The Red River Rivalry hasn’t always been played in Dallas, which is located roughly halfway between the campuses of the two schools, but obviously inside the state border of one. The first seven meetings, and 13 of the first 16 games, alternated between the campuses in Austin and Norman. Two during that period were held in Oklahoma City, and Houston hosted once. But, beginning in 1912 and every season since 1929, when the game resumed after a six-year hiatus, Texas and Oklahoma have met in Dallas. And, like the “Cocktail Party,” the stadium could be cut evenly down the middle, this time into Burnt Orange and Crimson beginning at the 50-yard line.
The Longhorns hold a 61-45-5 edge in the series overall. Though the teams have split the 71 meeting since World War II 34-34-3, the Sooners have won five of the last seven games, and two of the last three contests, including last year’s 45-40 thriller.
The Red River Rivalry is a perfect bucket list item for many reasons. Among them, it’s a heated rivalry game between two of college football’s biggest and best programs. It is also traditionally held in early October, in the middle part of the season, separating it from many other rivalry games held at the end of the regular season. Therefore, it’s easy to schedule a trip to the game in addition to one or two other mega matchups during the year – if tickets are available, of course.
4. The Army-Navy Game
Go Army. Beat Navy. Go Navy. Beat Army.
There may not be a more unique atmosphere in all of sports than the annual Army-Navy Game. The conclusion of the college football regular season, it has become tradition to schedule the clash between the United States Military Academy and the United States Naval Academy on a Saturday all its own.
After the dust has settled elsewhere in college football, after the bowl games and College Football Playoff pairings have been set, arguably the sport’s best example of playing “for the love of the game” takes place. Unlike many of college football’s better-known rivalries, the players at Army and Navy are highly unlikely to have an opportunity to play pro football. The players on the field, some playing the game for the final time, have committed to serve their country after they graduate.
It’s also televised nationally, and is understandably one of the highest-rated matchups of the regular season. It’s one of the rare neutral site matchups that truly raises the level of atmosphere for those in attendance.
More often than not, Army and Navy meet in Philadelphia, but always play in a venue large enough (usually an NFL stadium) to hold the tens of thousands of Cadets, Midshipmen, veterans and fans that travel to see it. Of the 117 all-time meetings since 1890, 86 have occurred in the City of Brotherly Love, most recently in 2015. Last year’s contest in Baltimore, a 21-17 Army upset, ended a record streak of 14 consecutive victories. Overall, the Midshipmen lead the series 60-50-7.
3. The Game: Ohio State vs. Michigan
Arguably the greatest college football rivalry in history, the Michigan-Ohio State football rivalry, also known simply as The Game, dates back to 1897 when the two sides met in Ann Arbor. Michigan won the first meeting and went unbeaten in the first 15, accumulating a 13-0-2 record from 1897-1918, though Ohio State has won more often than not since. The Buckeyes have won five in a row dating back to 2012, including a 30-27 win in overtime last season in Columbus..
Overall, the Wolverines hold a 58-48-6 all-time lead in the series across 113 meetings, putting it among the top 20 most played rivalries in Division I history. Unlike some major college football rivalries that meet at a neutral site, or even in bowl games (like Florida-Florida State), The Game has never been hosted anywhere but Ann Arbor or Columbus.
Seeing a Michigan-Ohio State game in Ann Arbor means a trip to “The Big House.”With a listed capacity of 107,601, but with an NCAA record attendance of 115,601 (set against Notre Dame in 2013), Michigan Stadium is one of the largest sporting venues in the world.
Likewise, Ohio Stadium has a listed capacity of 104,944, but hosted a venue record 110,045 fans for last year’s edition of The Game with Michigan. Attending a game there would come with the added benefit of seeing one of the best traditions in college football in its natural environment: Dotting the I in the Script Ohio.
Seeing any game at either stadium would be bucket list worthy for most college football fans, and getting a glimpse of The Game would be even better.
2. Iron Bowl: Auburn vs. Alabama
No. 16 on our list of 30 college football bucket list items is rolling Toomer’s Corner. However, there’s one fanbase that has no interest in such an activity: those that root for the Alabama Crimson Tide.
One of the most bitter rivalries in all of sports, the Auburn and Alabama football game is like no other. The hatred between fans in the Yellowhammer State has given rise to an odd set of celebrity, including Paul Finebaum, a journalist whose focus on the rivalry made him a popular radio personality, as well as Harvey Updyke, an Alabama fan whose name we know only because he was jailed after poisoning the hallowed Toomer’s Oaks and bragging about it on-air to Finebaum.
But more than the personalities that surround the game, the Iron Bowl traditionally pits two of the best teams in college football against one another. Collectively, the pair have combined for five national championships since 2009 (four by Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide), and the winner of the contest has gone on to represent the SEC West in eight of the last nine SEC Championship Games, including seven winners.
Alabama holds a 45-35-1 edge in the series, and has won three games in a row and four of five, including a 30-12 victory last year in Tuscaloosa. However, the one Auburn win in that span was one of the greatest in college football history, the famed “Kick Six” in which the Tigers returned a failed field goal 109 yards for a game winning touchdown as the final second ticked off the clock.
Like Ohio State-Michigan, a perfect bucket list would include trips to both Tuscaloosa and Auburn for the Iron Bowl. Each has a championship feel regardless of the location.
1. CFP National Championship Game
The only thing left is perhaps the most obvious: watching college football’s best team win a national championship. With the invention of the College Football Playoff, it’s easier to do than ever.
Decades ago, college football national titles were handed out in a far more complicated manner. Pollsters first awarded a victor before bowl games were played. Later, the decision was held until after the bowls. But, because of tie-ins between conferences, such as the longstanding tradition for the (now) Pac-12 and Big Ten champions to meet in the Rose Bowl regardless of ranking, the No. 1 ranked team didn’t always meet No. 2 on the field. As a result, there were far more split national championships awarded, with one major news service disagreeing with another, or the Coaches Poll.
The BCS was a step in the right direction, and convinced the major bowls to pit the top two ranked teams against one another, but that also often led to cries that one of the selected programs wasn’t as worthy as one that was left out. In 2014, the College Football Playoff was established to eliminate this issue by pitting the top four teams in a two-step tournament. It’s not perfect, but it’s the best we have for now – and it’s something to add to your college football bucket list.
Next: Predicting every 2017 College GameDay location
For fans hoping to schedule an upcoming trip, the 2017 title game will be held at the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. In 2018, the game moves across the country to Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. The last scheduled game is slated for the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans in 2019.