The Rowdiest College Football Stadiums in the U.S.

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title graphic for a study about the rowdiest college football stadiums in the U.S.
BetMGM @ Oct 09, 2024, 3:53 PM

Whether you’re a die-hard fan or just love the electrifying atmosphere, college football stadiums bring the noise like no other. To kick off a new college football season, we ranked the stadiums of 50 universities with top-ranked football programs using 11 key ranking factors that fuel the rowdiest atmospheres. From game attendance and home wins to noise levels, social media hype, and fan reviews on Google, weโ€™ve dug deep to uncover the rowdiest college football stadiums across the U.S.

The 15 Rowdiest College Football Stadiums in the U.S.

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These are the top five rowdiest college football stadiums in America:

1- Beaver Stadium

University: Penn State Nittany Lions

City: State College, PA

When it comes to rowdy college football stadiums, Penn Stateโ€™s Beaver Stadium takes the crown. Over the last five years, 99.85% of its home game seats have been filled, with an average attendance per home game of 106,410 fansโ€”the second highest in the study. Nittany Lions fans donโ€™t just show up, they show out! Beaver Stadium boasts the highest percentage of Google reviews mentioning great fans (12.9%), atmosphere (18.4%), and tailgating (10.9%). And with 222,000 followers on their Barstool Sports Instagram, itโ€™s clear the “We Are” spirit is unmatched both online and in the stands.

2 – Michigan Stadium

University: Michigan Wolverines

City: Ann Arbor, MI

The University of Michiganโ€™s Michigan Stadium, home to the Wolverines, is the second-rowdiest college football stadium in the U.S., and the numbers prove it. With an average home game attendance of 110,559โ€”the highest game attendance in the studyโ€”and 102.75% of seats filled over the last five years, itโ€™s a stadium packed to the max. Michigan Stadium also has the second-highest percentage of Google reviews praising the rowdy atmosphere (16.8%) and has an impressive overall Google star rating of 4.8.

3 – Bryant-Denny Stadium

University: Alabama Crimson Tide

City: Tuscaloosa, AL

Alabamaโ€™s Bryant-Denny Stadium ranks as the third-rowdiest in the nation, and itโ€™s no wonder. The stadium has been filled to 100.34% capacity over the last five years, the third-highest in the study. With the Crimson Tide winning a staggering 94.3% of their home games (30% higher than average), fan excitement is always at a fever pitch. Alabama football dominates on social media too, with 1.3 million Instagram followers, and over 206,000 TikTok posts are tagged with the #rolltide hashtagโ€”making it one of the most popular team chants on the platform.

4 – Memorial Stadium:

University: Clemson Tigers

City: Clemson, SC

Clemsonโ€™s Memorial Stadium, affectionately known as Death Valley, ranks as the fourth-rowdiest college football stadium in the U.S. Over the last five years, 98.71% of seats have been filledโ€”almost 10% higher than the studyโ€™s average. And with the Tigers winning 94.29% of their home games, fan excitement is always through the roof. Memorial Stadium also shines in fan reviews, with 16.3% praising the electric atmosphere, 9.8% highlighting the great fans, and an impressive 4.9 Google star rating. If you want a rowdy game-day experience, this is the place to be!

5 – Ohio Stadium

University: Ohio State Buckeyes

City: Columbus, OH

Ohio Stateโ€™s Ohio Stadium ranks fifth in the country for rowdiness. Over the past five years, the Buckeyes have packed the stadium to 100.07% capacity, with an average home game attendance of 102,849 fansโ€”the third-highest in the study. Ohio State’s 94.64% home win rate only fuels the rowdy atmosphere, with fans showing up loud and proud. And with over 1 million Instagram followers, the Buckeye football fandom clearly extends well beyond the stadium on game days.

The Rowdiest College Football Stadiums Across Categories

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When it comes to specific rowdiness categories, some college football stadiums truly stand out. Penn Stateโ€™s Beaver Stadium dominates with the most hyped fans, while Kansas Stateโ€™s Bill Snyder Family Stadium isnโ€™t far behind, with 10.8% of its Google reviews praising fan energy.

For atmosphere, Beaver Stadium (18.4%), Michigan Stadium (16.8%), and Clemsonโ€™s Memorial Stadium (16.3%) take the top three spots. Arkansasโ€™ Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium also ranks fourth-highest, with 15.5% of Google reviews calling out its incredible game-day vibe.

Georgiaโ€™s Sanford Stadium ranks as the sixth-rowdiest in the U.S. With 100.02% of its seats filled at home games over the last five years and 15% of fan reviews raving about the wild atmosphere, this place is fired up. But the real highlight? The Bulldogs boast the best home-field record in the study, winning an incredible 97.14% of their home games. From packed stands to an unbeatable win rate, Sanford Stadium brings the heat every game day.

When it comes to rowdy football stadiums, the noise factor is everything. The Oregon Ducksโ€™ Autzen Stadium steals the spotlight as the loudest, with 7.5% of fan reviews mentioning its ear-splitting volume. No wonder itโ€™s ranked the 10th rowdiest overall. Not far behind, the Florida Gatorsโ€™ Ben Hill Griffin Stadium isnโ€™t for the faint of heartโ€”6.3% of reviews mention its insane decibel levels, landing the Gators in the 8th spot in the overall ranking. Both stadiums prove that when it comes to crowd noise, theyโ€™re on a whole different level.

The Full Ranking Data

Interested in diving deeper into the numbers for the rowdiest college football stadiums, or want to see how your team stacks up if itโ€™s not listed within the above charts? Weโ€™ve compiled our full data study for all 50 stadiums analyzed into the interactive table below. Search for your stadium of choice or click on the heading of each column to sort by category.

Closing Thoughts

These stadiums aren’t just venues with bleachers and a scoreboard; theyโ€™re sonic battlegrounds where fan energy fuels every touchdown, fumble, and victory chant. Understanding where the rowdiest fans are can help with football betting each Saturday.

Ready to turn all that game-day energy into action? Head over to the BetMGM online sportsbook and place your bets on the next big matchup.

Methodology

To determine the rowdiest college football stadiums in the country, we created a list of the stadiums of 50 universities with top-ranked football programs, according to the 2024 AP Poll and the 2024 ESPN College Football Power Index.

We evaluated the 50 stadiums on 11 ranking factors contributing to fan and stadium rowdiness. We assigned stadiums with a score of 0 to 5 for each ranking factor, with a score of 5 representing the highest levels of rowdiness. We determined each stadiumโ€™s total score from the total of its individual factor scores, which were weighted according to their impact on rowdiness. Individual factor scores were then added together to give each stadium a final rowdiness score from 0 to 50. Higher scores indicate that stadiums are rowdier.

The 11 ranking factors include

Ranking FactorSourceWeight
Percentage of Filled Seats(5-Year Average)D1 Ticker, College Athletics Websites1.5
Average Game Attendance(5-Year Average)D1 Ticker1.0
Percentage of Home Games Won(5-Year Average)College Athletics Websites1.0
Google Star RatingGoogle Reviews1.0
Percent of Reviews Mentioning Great FansGoogle Reviews1.0
Percent of Reviews Mentioning Great AtmosphereGoogle Reviews1.0
Percent of Reviews Mentioning LoudnessGoogle Reviews1.0
Percent of Reviews Mentioning TailgatingGoogle Reviews1.0
No. of College Barstool Sports FollowersInstagram0.5
No. of Official College Football Team FollowersInstagram0.5
No. of Team Cheer Hashtags(i.e., #rolltide)TikTok0.5
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Our BetMGM editors and authors are sports experts with a wealth of knowledge of the sports industry at all levels. Their coverage includes sports news, previews and predictions, fun facts, and betting.

Our BetMGM editors and authors are sports experts with a wealth of knowledge of the sports industry at all levels. Their coverage includes sports news, previews and predictions, fun facts, and betting.