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re: EA Sports College Football 26 Toughest Places to Play
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:10 pm to gamecockman12
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:10 pm to gamecockman12
Peak Neyland Stadium is easily top 5 atmosphere nationwide. Our massive arse double decking slope that wraps around Neyland holds all the noise in. Don't think anyone's stadium puts the fans as on top of the action as Neyland Stadium does. Our lower bowl is sick
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Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:11 pm to GoCrazyAuburn
quote:
To be fair, its those damn cow bells
State's tough place to play thing was always a combination of the cowbells, it always being a "trap" type game going to Starkville and underestimating them, a stadium that does hold noise pretty well, etc.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:11 pm to psk_Vol
quote:
Peak Neyland Stadium is easily top 5 atmosphere nationwide. Our massive arse double decking slope that wraps around Neyland holds all the noise in. Don't think anyone's stadium puts the fans as on top of the action as Neyland Stadium does. Our lower bowl is sick
Neyland at night at a fever pitch is the loudest place in the country - and that includes peak LSU.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:14 pm to SummerOfGeorge
Very true.
God help anyone the day Auburn finally gets some hope back
God help anyone the day Auburn finally gets some hope back
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:16 pm to SummerOfGeorge
quote:
That's still not losing home games "all the time"
It just points to what an insane machine we were in terms of being awesome all the time and the fact that typical things that effect programs/teams did not effect us (let downs vs bad teams, home/road, etc).
It's no coincidence that we started losing/playing close games vs unranked teams and having much better home/road splits when Saban was clearly starting to struggle with keeping teams together the last few seasons.
For the purpose of determining home field advantage, it absolutely is. It shows that Alabama was basically as likely to win or lose at the same rate despite the venue. If we had a large home field advantage, the numbers should be lopsided.
Even if we include last year, it's still near 38%. Although if we were being honest, the Vandy game was hardly a road game really.
I'm just not seeing it. Alabama wins because they are a good football team, not because of the stadium.
I can't be the only person who would rather play LSU @ LSU than as a home game. We do much better against them on the road in general, and they are the #1 school on the list.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:16 pm to 3down10
quote:
I mean to me that seems like a good bit of home game losses compared to others.
Auburn has lost 15 home games in the last five seasons. We have lost 12 home games in the last 20 seasons. That is not a good bit at all unless you're just being intentionally obtuse.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:16 pm to Henry Jones Jr
quote:
Ole Miss has lost 2 games at home in 3 seasons but somehow Davis Wade is a tougher place to play
The Rebs at the Vaught under Kiffin
2020 - 2-3 (2-3)
2021 - 7-0 (4-0)
2022 - 5-2 (2-2)
2023 - 7-0 (4-0)
2024 - 6-1 (3-1)
TOTAL - 27-6 (15-6)
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:17 pm to GoCrazyAuburn
I do think there are 2 very different "tough place to play" rankings that you have to do
#1 - How hard a place is it for a #22 ranked team at 2 PM
#2 - How hard a place is it for the #1 ranked team at 8 PM
#1 is a measure of consistency and whether a stadium is always somewhat challenging to play in. #2 is a measure of how loud and rowdy a place is at its peak.
Some places maintain a pretty consistent rowdiness. Others are unbearable 1-2x a year, but pretty tame the rest of the time.
#1 - How hard a place is it for a #22 ranked team at 2 PM
#2 - How hard a place is it for the #1 ranked team at 8 PM
#1 is a measure of consistency and whether a stadium is always somewhat challenging to play in. #2 is a measure of how loud and rowdy a place is at its peak.
Some places maintain a pretty consistent rowdiness. Others are unbearable 1-2x a year, but pretty tame the rest of the time.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:18 pm to 3down10
quote:
For the purpose of determining home field advantage, it absolutely is. It shows that Alabama was basically as likely to win or lose at the same rate despite the venue. If we had a large home field advantage, the numbers should be lopsided.
Even if we include last year, it's still near 38%. Although if we were being honest, the Vandy game was hardly a road game really.
I'm just not seeing it. Alabama wins because they are a good football team, not because of the stadium.
I can't be the only person who would rather play LSU @ LSU than as a home game. We do much better against them on the road in general, and they are the #1 school on the list.
I don't think many people argue BDS is some sort of massive advantage. It's a loud stadium in big games (especially the last 3-5 years). It's pretty tame the rest of the time. And even when it is loud and rowdy the structure itself doesn't retain noise very well at all because of the way the lower deck slopes back.
This post was edited on 6/24/25 at 3:19 pm
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:18 pm to RollTide1987
quote:
Auburn has lost 15 home games in the last five seasons. We have lost 12 home games in the last 20 seasons. That is not a good bit at all unless you're just being intentionally obtuse.
I'm not obtuse, you're just pretending Alabama and Auburn are equal football teams.
They are not. Auburn stinks, we don't.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:22 pm to SummerOfGeorge
quote:
I don't think many people argue BDS is some sort of massive advantage. It's a loud stadium in big games (especially the last 3-5 years). It's pretty tame the rest of the time. And even when it is loud and rowdy the structure itself doesn't retain noise very well at all because of the way the lower deck slopes back.
I mean we're #5 on the list and I'm just saying that's not really an accurate ranking.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:23 pm to 3down10
quote:
Alabama wins because they are a good football team, not because of the stadium.
The same is true for virtually every football team in every home stadium in the country. The mystique of the Swamp was created in the 90s when Steve Spurrier and the Florida Gators were the class of the conference. Tiger Stadium was not that daunting of a place to play for teams in the 90s because LSU sucked, but it's definitely been a graveyard for a lot of teams over the last 25 years. Auburn, when you discount the Iron Bowl, hasn't been that difficult of a place to come out of with a win either over the last 10 years or so.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:23 pm to gamecockman12
Tiger stadium? Not for us
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:25 pm to gamecockman12
Looks pretty accurate to me.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:25 pm to 3down10
quote:
I mean we're #5 on the list and I'm just saying that's not really an accurate ranking.
A lot of it is bad
3. Ohio Stadium
4. Sanford Stadium
5. BDS
10. Michigan Stadium
13. DKR
14. Doak
15. Camp Randall
But then again, some of the places that I think should be high, stats don't really back that up either. Players and coaches say Kyle Field is very hard to play at - but their record there isn't all that impressive. Tiger Stadium has started trending the same way post-Miles. Auburn's lost more bad home games the last decade than road ones. Florida's record at home is is as bad or worse than the road.
So who knows. In the end, I think that "toughest to play" rarely is something statistical. Certain great teams are almost better playing in wild atmospheres because they revel in it and it focuses them.
This post was edited on 6/24/25 at 3:27 pm
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:27 pm to gamecockman12
So, LSU is a national brand?
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:28 pm to gamecockman12
All places on that list are tough when they have good teams.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:29 pm to gamecockman12
mean I get that, but Florida State
Have you ever been to an fsu game home or away? Those dudes need like 8 busses just for the brass section of the band. I hate fsu but when they fire up the warchant(or whatever it’s called) it’s something to behold. Anything above 80k is crazy but 80 k going crazy in unison to a drum beat is pretty intimidating.
Have you ever been to an fsu game home or away? Those dudes need like 8 busses just for the brass section of the band. I hate fsu but when they fire up the warchant(or whatever it’s called) it’s something to behold. Anything above 80k is crazy but 80 k going crazy in unison to a drum beat is pretty intimidating.
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:30 pm to RollTide1987
quote:
We have lost one home game this decade and only 12 games in the last 20 seasons in Bryant-Denny.
but is that because of the crowd noise or your talent level? I think there needs to be a separation there.
but I also think the stadium pulse is too overpowered in the game
Posted on 6/24/25 at 3:30 pm to 3down10
quote:
you're just pretending Alabama and Auburn are equal football teams.
And you are pretending that Alabama hasn't been elite in Bryant-Denny over the last 20 years or so. How many teams do you think have better home field records than Alabama during that time? I guarantee you that number is in the single digits, if not absolute zero.
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