RateItAll: The Opinion Network

The most unique college football experience in the NCAA. Huge stadium. Hills everywhere. River filled with boats for tailgating. Loud. Colorful.

it jus dont get no better then bein a vols onna the nicest staduims around an awsome fight song greatest and loudest fans and alllll that orange jus cant beat it when its football time in tennessee

Don't much like the Vols but.....well, I can't even count that high!!!!! That's a big stadium...

It's great to be a Tennessee Volunteer.

Talk about rednecks, it's big and FULL of people from the woods that you've never seen before in your life. design had been voted tops, but it is a big old metal supported bowl. the crowd gets very quiet when they get behind. . .which has been the case for several years now.

tennessee football is one of the best programs in the nation. everyone know when you play the vols you are in for a fight. the team had some rough goes last year having lost several games by less than a touchdown. but all that is turning around and the vols are on the rise again. go vols

First of all UT has th eworst fight song ever. It is not even a real fight song....and it was recorded years ago by other people. Yes 100k is a cool stat to have but once again all they do is yell. Add some new things to it. Also neyland looks very very old and the seats are very very tight. Obnoxious rude fans dont help either. The worst uniform color...there are just so many things wrong with neyland. It is by far the most overrated stadium in the nation. The only thing that saves it is the fact that it is in a nice setting.

One of the few stadiums that holds over 100,000 people and tailgating on the river makes it unique too. The checkerboard endzones are cool, but parking and driving to and from it are a nightmare.

The little orange got beat by Vandy!! LMAOOOOOOOO!!

a classic look. The checkerboard endzones are what hooks me.

Neyland Stadium, when at its peak, is the loudest stadium in all of college football; no question about it. The operative phrase there, however, is when at its peak. Crowds here can be absolutely deafening...depending upon the opponent. If it's Florida or Bama, bring your Advil because your head will be ringing for days. If it's a non-descript out of conference opponent, bring your pillow. I've been to LSU's Tiger Stadium, Florida's Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Clemson's Memorial Stadium and Washington's Husky Stadium - those four, along with Neyland, are tops for noise. On a consistent basis, I'd say the Swamp rates best for noise; they bring it all game long. But it pales to Neyland when at its peak. Neyland is completely enclosed and rises straight up from the field...all the elements you want to create amazing sound. Standing at field level, you feel like you're standing in midtown Manhattan; the stadium is huge, on top of you and quite intimidating. The exterior is an eyesore but will be receiving a long overdue, much-needed brick facade makeover. Same for the concourses inside. Seating is more cramped than it should be due to the administration's desire to be as large as possible. Silly. The setting is unmatched, though Husky Stadium in Seattle and Folsom Field in Boulder are darn close.

Excellent place to get a feel for big time college football, SEC football. This place made me think of what the Roman Colessium must have been like. Large venue, on top of the action, fans into the game. When the UT band forms a T and the team runs thru it, it's just vintage College Football. Want to explain to a novice what the American College Football Expetrience is like - go to a UT game. Tenn's Vol Navy is a great traditional as well. Good ole Rocky Top.............Rocky Top Tennessee !

I USED TO RESPECT TENNESSEE FOOTBALL. THE TRADITION, THE STADIUM. IT LOOKED REALLY NICE AFTER THE THIRD QUARTER WHEN AUBURN CAME TO TOWN. I GOT TO SEE TENNESSEE PLAY AT THE 2005 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. NOT ONLY DID I HEAR ROCKY TOP 1000 TIMES BUT I LOST ALL RESPECT FOR UT WHEN JASON CAMPBELL WAS SLOW TO GET UP AFTER A PLAY AND THE UT BAND BROKE INTO A FIGHT CHEER AND THE UT FANS STARTED TO CHEER. [CHEERING FOR A HURT PLAYER]. WHAT A BUNCH OF SPINELESS LOOSERS. HEY BUCKTEETH HILLBILLIES TAKE A NOTE FROM AUBURN FANS. WHEN REGGIE BROWN FROM GEORGIA WAS HURT THE BAND STOPPED PLAYING, THE CROWD HUSHED, AND THEN WHEN REGGIE STARTED TO COME TO, 87,000 PEOPLE STOOD UP AND BEGAN SHOUTING REGGIE, REGGIE, REGGIE. CHEERING FOR THE RECOVERY OF A DOWNED WARRIOR. SEE THE DIFFERENCE OR DO I NEED TO DRAW IT OUT FOR YOU IN CRAYON OR DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW TO SPELL CRAYON? NO WANDER THE TUSCULOOSERS HATE YOUR GUTS. YOU HAVE NO CLASS. YOUR BALL PLAYERS DON'T EVEN ATTEND CLASS EXCEPT PAROLE BOARD HEARINGS. WHAT A WASTE. GENERAL NELLAND WOULD TURN OVER IN HIS GRAVE IF HE KNEW WHAT UT FOOTBALL STANDS FOR TODAY.

If that band plays rocky top once, they play it 100 times... gets really old...

The UT pregame is amazing... fans are kind of lame, though... they like to shake pom poms more than they like to yell... setting is cool on the river... tailgating is really lame... still, just seeing that big of a crowd is a pretty cool experience.

This is the most overrated stadium in the country. Yes it can be loud at times but with 107,000 it ought to always be loud. The Rocky Top theme song is annoying after you hear it a few times and due to the size of the stadium there is some bad seating. Fans want to be comfortable, bigger is not always better.

Fastest volume switch in college football - it can go from 10 to deathly quiet or vice versa in .5 nanoseconds. Great atmosphere, even if you're not dressed in orange.

an ok stadium, but your fans are horrible. You seriously need to teach the hillbillies something other than the 17 or so words to rocky top...and not play it every time you make a td, every time you make a fg, every time you make a first down, every time you make a yard, everytime fat phil eats a doughnut....you get the idea.

its an amazing stadium to say the least. i dont like tennessee, but i've been to a game there. its decent only because if you're high up it pretty much blows.

Big is not always better. BIG CAN BE MUCH UGLIER AS IN NEYLAND. UGLY MULTI ORANGE CLAD FANS AND TOO HIGH SEATING .FANS ARE BAD TO VISITORS AND TO EACH OTHER. BRUTUAL PARKING AND CONCESSIONS.TOO MANY PEOPLE AND NOT AS LOUD AS THIS CROWD SHOULD BE..NEVER,NEVER GETS ROCKING... VASTLY OVER-RATED AND REMEMBER IT IS BUTT UGLY...

I was there for the 2004 UF/UT game. Neyland is big and high up, but that is about it. Sad thing is with all those people in there, it can get quiet, even when the opposing team is on offense. It doesn't have that constant noise. It's cramped, an eyesore, and the concourse is pretty much dirt...and the bolted down trailers for bathrooms are sad. You can tell the places that were built before fire codes existed. Gameday atmosphere almost can't be beat, but the stadium is due for a major overhaul.

Why in the world would 107,000 people dress up to look like traffic cones? If Fulmer had to try to squeeze his fat ass into one of the tiny spaces alloted to fans, those on either side of him would be in trouble.

One word: sardines. UT is too obsessed with packing that stadium with people. Get rid of 10,000 seats so everybody else can breathe. I've been to games there where you have to stand sideways to fit all the people in the row. Also the whole erector set look of the outside is grotesque. The atmosphere is phenomenal but its that way at most SEC games. I give it two stars just for being in the SEC.

I'm a Notre Dame fan who visited UT for the first time this past year for the ND-UT game. The fans were some of the most respectful fans that we have ever met. Good knowledge of football and team's history. Tailgating atmosphere could have been better. They did not have much parking other than in restaurant parking lots and site lines in the stadium could have been better but really a great place to go to the game in regards of overall atmosphere!

This is coming from a gator. I went to Neyland stadium when Florida played Tennessee (the Jabar Gaffney game). Even though my team won, that gameday atmosphere was awesome! Even though we are bitter rivals, I think we can both agree that we each have the best stadiums in the country.

TENNESSEE MAKES ME SICK, SCREW YOU ROCKY TOP, ROLL TIDE

This stadium sickens me because of the 100k mountain hicks and having to listen to rocky top over and over and over!

Same as Michigan, biggest doesn't mean best, or even beter.Thats all it is, big.

Big but really ugly on the outside. Looks like a erecta-set on steroids! Lacks the old time college feel.

Not bad, but a lot of dumb imbread hicks at the games. Most are hopped up on moonshine, so don't cross them!

I'd like to start out by admitting bias toward this stadium -- as a UT student, alumnus, and band alumnus, I have many sentimental memories attached to this stadium. Do stick around for the review, though, as I'll try to be objective. The architecture of the stadium is rather ugly if viewed aesthetically -- it isn't symmetric, though it is a double bowl, and it's a mixture of concrete stands, steel beams, and aluminum seats. But once you fill up those seats with 108,000 dedicated fans (including the 10,000 visitors), it no longer matters what is under their butts. The student section stands, of course, but those who wish to sit will find that the seats are rather narrow, but are manageable if you insist that you get the space you paid for (4,000 standing tickets are sold for each game, so crowding may occur as a result of standing fans pushing their way into seating areas). Concourses are somewhat narrow and restroom facilities are not magnificent, but such can be expected from an 80-year old stadium with the spatial limitations (by neighboring buildings) that Neyland has. Generally, it takes less than 30 minutes to get in or get out of the stadium, which is quite a feat considering the size of the crowd that packs in there. As for the game experience, I have never seen it's equal. The fans here are intelligent about football, though very biased, of course, toward their home team, and are very spirited. Opposing players on offense should expect rumbling from the upper deck during key points, and the marching band is justifiably well-respected by the crowd. Rocky Top will be quite familiar to you by the end of the night -- the more an opposing coach hates it, the more it is played. Despite reports that Rocky Top is the only thing the band plays, the band plays after more than half of the downs and has a repertoire of over 40 songs at their disposal at any point, at least 20 of which are generally used in any given game, with special emphasis given to the fight songs (Rocky Top, Down the Field, and Fight Vols Fight) and the theme from Gladiator known as The Battle. There is no other place in the nation that is as loud for a night game, so if you're planning to go to just one game, try to make it one of the night games. If you're an opposing fan, expect your share of ribbing, but keep in mind that if you're respectful, the average UT fan responds in kind. I definitely think that Neyland Stadium is a good place to go if you want to see the best of college football atmosphere.

5 for size, sound and atmosphere...2 for design (i could tell what other people ate for breakfast as i tried to navigate around the stadium) still, tough place to play and they love their vols

Went and saw a game in 2002 vs. Rutgers. The crowd was great. The stadium was a bit like a jungle gym. Not too attractive, but decent atmosphere.

nauseating colors, crappy stadium, fulmer's lieing self should be fired for making a fool out of himself and making his already bad university look worse.

the stadium itself is decent, but too big...but the setting is outstanding, right on the river...my first game at UT (years ago), we flew into a small airport and took a boat to the foot of the stadium, walkin' 100 yards or so from the river...never got in a car...too cool.

I've been there 3 times...Great fight song, overall nice people, but the stadium seats 107,000+. What's wrong with that? It probably should seat 95,000 comfortably. I got between a couple of bubbas, and HAD to stand the entire game! I didn't have a buttcheek's worth of seat to call mine. And try to go to the bathroom at halftime...talk about a traffic jam...It could be such a nice place if they just didn't try to jam so many people into the place. Nice ladies too.

Arguably the best place in the country to see a game...amazing tradition, great people.

Other places may have more charm, but no where has more excitement! Seats are tight, but who needs seats when everyone is standing and yelling.

Not my favorite stadium in the sec.

Good football atmosphere. Aside from being huge the stadium is rather dull. Lacks the charm many others have.

i'm a die hard sooner fan, and my great uncle was an all american at ou, but there is just something about tenn stad, great atmos and everything and even though i'm a sooner fan i love that damn rocky top song thats another thing that makes it great

Since I'm a UT alumni you might say that I'm a bit biased - but Neyland Stadium is a special place. The upper deck for the 107,000+ seating capacity monolith is steep and high. Seems like you're right above and looking almost straight down on the playing field. Games after dark the world seems to end at the upper rim of the giant bowl.

There is plenty of room in this stadium- second to Michigan Stadium for the record. In order to get your seat call WAY before the season starts jmabus1. Otherwise it wll be great to see the game from a boat. This charming stadium is located close to a river- It's fun to be near whether you're on land or on water. Smokey will agree!

fat rude rednecks are hilarious. and this stadium is amazing. Huge and loud w/great people. im a hokie fan but u gotta love those vols. everytime i go to knoxville i get smashed and end up doing hilarious things w/my boys.......Hermatige?

no room to sit

The only good think you can say about this stadium is it is loud and big.....the people are overweight, rude, rednecks.....the band is apparently to stupid to learn more than one song.....the stadium is old and cramped and the campus in not very pretty

overcrowded, 90% of the fans and students weigh 400 lbs or more an expansion to this stadium is repainting the numbers on the bleachers closer together very much overrated