Cory Linsner
May 25, 2024 5:16 pm ET
The Big Ten will have a new look starting in the 2024-25 football season, with the conference adding Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington into the mix and bringing the conference to 18 teams.
With the new look Big Ten here, that means there is four more stadiums to add to the mix for fans to enjoy.
Here, we are going to rank the stadiums in the Big Ten, with the inclusion of the new members of the conference. Our criteria is a mixture of the stadium’s “niceness”, history and stadium atmosphere.
18. SHI Stadium (Rutgers)
Asbury Park Press
Despite Rutgers being the “birthplace of college football”, SHI Stadium lacks history and has next to nothing in terms of stadium atmosphere.
17. Lanny and Sharon Martin Lakeside Facility (Northwestern)
Northwestern Football will play a majority of its games this season at the Lanny & Sharon Martin athletics facility on the Evanston campus. 🌊🏈
The temporary structure built at the facility will provide a stunning backdrop for the 2024 & 2025 seasons: https://t.co/thKVgC0TfB pic.twitter.com/62w4tBNDBd
— Northwestern (@NorthwesternU) April 10, 2024
A demolished Ryan Field may have a better stadium atmosphere than SHI Stadium, but nonetheless, Northwestern will be playing their home games on their lakeside practice facility. The plans for lakeside stadium seating, and the setting surrounding the field, has the potential to be beautiful.
16. SECU Stadium (Maryland)
Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Another stadium lacking on history and stadium atmosphere, Maryland’s SECU Stadium falls into the bottom tier.
15. University of Illinois Memorial Stadium (Illinois)
Nov 7, 2020; Champaign, Illinois, USA; The Illinois Fighting Illini run onto the field during introductions prior to the first half against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports
It’s not really good, but it’s also not bad. Atmosphere lacks here at Illinois as well. If basketball crowds translated to football, this could be much higher.
14. Ross-Ade Stadium (Purdue)
Oct. 14, 2023; Lafayette, In., USA;
The Ohio State Buckeyes take the field at Ross-Ade Stadium in Lafayette for Saturday’s NCAA Division I football game against the Purdue Boilermakers.
A stadium that routinely gets overtaken by opposing fans, this is another case of a basketball school that doesn’t translate to football.
13. Indiana University Memorial Stadium (Indiana)
Sep 2, 2023; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; The Ohio State Buckeyes take the field during the first half of the NCAA football game at Indiana University Memorial Stadium.
Insert the Purdue section here for Indiana, honestly.
12. Huntington Bank Stadium (Minnesota)
Sep 2, 2021; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Two planes flyover during the national anthem prior to the game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and Minnesota Gophers at Huntington Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Harrison Barden-USA TODAY Sports
Minnesota’s Huntington Bank Stadium got a nice upgrade when the Vikings used it as their home stadium for a short period of time. Pair that with the atmosphere that is building there under the P.J. Fleck tenure, Minnesota is a solid place for a game.
11. Spartan Stadium (Michigan State)
Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
If this was based solely on stadium atmosphere, and history, Spartan Stadium would have a chance to shoot up this list, but it sits at No. 11 due to desperate need for renovations to the concourse and stadium as a whole.
10. Memorial Stadium (Nebraska)
Nov 11, 2023; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Three CH-47 Chinook helicopters fly over the field during the national anthem before the game between the Nebraska Cornhuskers and the Maryland Terrapins at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports
The stadium atmosphere in Lincoln is one of the best in college football, but the $450 million renovation the school is pushing for is desperately needed.
9. Camp Randall Stadium (Wisconsin)
MADISON, WISCONSIN – OCTOBER 07: A overview picture from the southwest corner of stadium during the game between the Wisconsin Badgers and Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Camp Randall Stadium on October 07, 2023 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)
Another older stadium with an outstanding atmosphere, Camp Randall is slowly renovating and improving the overall experience.
8. Husky Stadium (Washington)
Nov 25, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; General view of Alaska Airlines Field at Husky Stadium during the second quarter of a game between the Washington State Cougars and Washington Huskies. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
A stadium built in 1920, Husky Stadium had a recent renovation and the stadium is gorgeous. Sitting right on the water, the experience in Seattle is one of the better experiences in the league.
7. Michigan Stadium (Michigan)
Photo was taken from a helicopter as the band played on the field shortly before kickoff.
Yes, Michigan Stadium is very big, but that is all there really is too it. The brand of U of M carries much more weight for the stadium than the stadium really deserves.
6. LA Memorial Coliseum (USC)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 04: USC Trojans tight end position players huddle before play against the Washington Huskies at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on November 04, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
The Coliseum is known for the crazy amount of history it holds both in football and other sports. That alone makes this such a prestigious stadium, despite the lack of fan support USC has had in recent memory.
5. Autzen Stadium (Oregon)
A pair of F-15 Eagle fighter jets fly over the field during the Oregon Ducks’ Spring Game Saturday, April 27. 2024 at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore.
Oregon’s Autzen Stadium is known to be one of the loudest stadiums in college football. The atmosphere in Eugene is continually the best in the sport.
4. Kinnick Stadium (Iowa)
Sep 16, 2023; Iowa City, Iowa, USA; The Iowa Hawkeyes swarm enters the field before the game against the Western Michigan Broncos at Kinnick Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
If you are a fan of a traditional Big Ten team, you know one of the most dreaded road trips is Kinnick at night. Kinnick is a brutal place to play with one of the best fan atmospheres in the country, and now a really cool tradition with the children’s hospital next door.
3. Ohio Stadium (Ohio State)
Apr 18, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio Stadium
The horseshoe is iconic and not only for it’s cool design, but also the crazy home field advantage it gives the Buckeyes.
2. Beaver Stadium (Penn State)
Penn State and Iowa take the field at the same time to to play in a White Out football game at Beaver Stadium Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, in State College, Pa.
There is no tradition quite like the white out in Happy Valley. Penn State’s Beaver Stadium is one of a kind and is continually a destination spot for fans to attend.
1. Rose Bowl Stadium (UCLA)
Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images
The Rose Bowl Stadium is arguably the most iconic stadium in college football history. UCLA is blessed to be able to call this sanctuary home, despite the lack of fan support they get inside of it, there is no denying how great the Rose Bowl Stadium is.
