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First visit to Knoxville - What a town
Posted on 6/30/26 at 11:51 am
Posted on 6/30/26 at 11:51 am
We just did a college visit. My impressions:
1) Cranes everywhere on and off campus. I can't tell if is condos or hotels being built by but man there is a lot of stuff going up.
2) Jimmy Haslam loves the school
3) Neyland is impressive but also kind of old when viewed up close.
4) What a setting for a college campus. The bend in the Cumberland and the tall cliffs on the river and the mountains in the distance and steep hills make for a really scenic daily existence.
5) I was surprised there was not more of a college strip. Cumberland avenue was a lot of hotels, chain restaurants and fast food.
The nearby downtown and old town host a lot of nice stuff but there I could not see more of a UT specific zone with old school college specific joints. did I just miss that?
6) Everyone there was from out of state. The school is a real national draw now.
7) Folks still aren't over Lane Kiffin. Our tour guide mentioned him several times.
8) The campus has a nice architectural consistency even with the new buildings. I say this coming from A&M, where we stack terribly ugly and incongruous designs on purpose.
9) The quarries and other stuff near campus looks like a lot of fun.
Also, the history is fascinating. I didn't realize Knoxville fell to the Union without a shot fired and that Eastern Tennessee had a mixed view on the war with lots of Union sympathizers.
The whole university and town city feels like a former hidden gem that has blown out quickly both in student interest and population. do the old alums feel that way?
Great school and great city, Vols.
1) Cranes everywhere on and off campus. I can't tell if is condos or hotels being built by but man there is a lot of stuff going up.
2) Jimmy Haslam loves the school
3) Neyland is impressive but also kind of old when viewed up close.
4) What a setting for a college campus. The bend in the Cumberland and the tall cliffs on the river and the mountains in the distance and steep hills make for a really scenic daily existence.
5) I was surprised there was not more of a college strip. Cumberland avenue was a lot of hotels, chain restaurants and fast food.
The nearby downtown and old town host a lot of nice stuff but there I could not see more of a UT specific zone with old school college specific joints. did I just miss that?
6) Everyone there was from out of state. The school is a real national draw now.
7) Folks still aren't over Lane Kiffin. Our tour guide mentioned him several times.
8) The campus has a nice architectural consistency even with the new buildings. I say this coming from A&M, where we stack terribly ugly and incongruous designs on purpose.
9) The quarries and other stuff near campus looks like a lot of fun.
Also, the history is fascinating. I didn't realize Knoxville fell to the Union without a shot fired and that Eastern Tennessee had a mixed view on the war with lots of Union sympathizers.
The whole university and town city feels like a former hidden gem that has blown out quickly both in student interest and population. do the old alums feel that way?
Great school and great city, Vols.
14
Posted on 6/30/26 at 11:54 am to Windy City
quote:
6) Everyone there was from out of state. The school is a real national draw now.
Most of the SEC schools are. The out of state tuition is cheaper than in-state tuition up North.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 11:58 am to Windy City
Well, the old strip by campus is long gone. It was great. OCI (Old College Inn) and other places were torn down in favor of new housing and whatnot. Looks completely different from what it used to look like. I guess Market Square is the place now, although it was popular in the 90's. I still miss Tomato Head.
Best part for me, when we lived there, was being so close to the Smokies. Pretty quick drive through Maryville, Alcoa and Townsend. That's the best way to get there.
Best part for me, when we lived there, was being so close to the Smokies. Pretty quick drive through Maryville, Alcoa and Townsend. That's the best way to get there.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 11:59 am to Windy City
Alabama, LSU, Ole Miss, Tennessee are drawing a lot of out of state students from up north. LSU's freshmen class this year has 9,000 students.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:01 pm to Windy City
quote:
Neyland is impressive but also kind of old when viewed up close
The outside looks so bad. They don't call in the home of the world largest garbage truck worker convention for nothing.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:03 pm to Windy City
quote:
6) Everyone there was from out of state. The school is a real national draw now.
According to the 2026 moveBuddah Moving Forecast, the top "Move-To-Hotspots" in SEC States are:
1. Knoxville
2. Tulsa, Ok
4. Savanah, GA
7. Frisco, TX
15. Jacksonville, FL
17. Orlando, FL
20. Plano, TX
25. Dallas, TX
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:04 pm to Cimarron
quote:
Best part for me, when we lived there, was being so close to the Smokies. Pretty quick drive through Maryville, Alcoa and Townsend. That's the best way to get there.
We went a day early to make the drive into Smokies.
I randomly drove by Sam Houston's home and schoolhouse in Maryville on the way.
We did the Foothills Parkway and it was great scenery.
Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg lived up to their rep with massive summer crowds and lots of fun, rednecky stuff to do.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:06 pm to Windy City
Did you learn about G10? There are two nice fellers on this board that can enlighten you.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:16 pm to Kansas City King
quote:
The outside looks so bad. They don't call in the home of the world largest garbage truck worker convention for nothing.
I'm sure it looks odd to you. With Farout Field/Memorial Stadium's record attendance being just over 75,000, it's just a little smaller than Neyland Stadium was 50 years ago (1976 capacity increased to 80,000). The crazy thing is that Memorial Stadium expanded just 2 years after Neyland Stadium did to max the capacity at 75,000.
Neyland has had 4 renovations since '76 to bring official capacity to around 101k, and held a record 109k in 2004. With the addition of Jumbotron and other changes, Memorial Stadium's max capacity is listed at 57,000...that's only 1,000 fewer than Neyland Stadium's capacity was after the expansion in 1966. So, I'm sure someone who was used to seeing their stadium holding under 60k would think any stadium holding over 100k would look odd. I'll ask my father to verify, since I wasn't even alive back then. He's not even 90 yet, so he might remember what it was like back in the days of little stadiums.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:22 pm to BufordT
quote:
Did you learn about G10? There are two nice fellers on this board that can enlighten you.
Just enough to learn it is a real lightning rod of a project. The garage, I was told, has tailgating history to it and that will be done away with and it also is an important parking area for students.
Basically it is all going to be Disney-fied into an entertainment zone at the expense of student convenience and tailgating history?
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:23 pm to madmaxvol
Sorry bout your tiny pecker, bro.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:36 pm to Windy City
quote:
Also, the history is fascinating. I didn't realize Knoxville fell to the Union without a shot fired and that Eastern Tennessee had a mixed view on the war with lots of Union sympathizers.
Texas man learns about the difference between hillbillies and rednecks. Another reason you will never be considered part of the south.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:38 pm to madmaxvol
quote:
1. Knoxville
I don't think I'd rate it this high until you guys fix that interstate near the city. I swear it feels like it's been under construction for 15 or more years.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:38 pm to ManBearSharkReb
Knoxville is great. Just a step outside the metro and you will meet some very interesting people.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:44 pm to ManBearSharkReb
quote:
Another reason you will never be considered part of the south.
To this specific point, I don't think Texans have ever considered themselves as part of the South or wanted that status except maybe in the eastern most regions.
This post was edited on 6/30/26 at 12:46 pm
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:47 pm to Windy City
Plus all your spirit wear can double as hunting and safety gear. that could be a big money saver right there.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:48 pm to LSU Patrick
quote:
Most of the SEC schools are. The out of state tuition is cheaper than in-state tuition up North
The Greek scenes and football culture have also become wildly popular in the cultural zeitgeist (or at least moreso nationally than ever before). TikTok culture has greatly influenced the sentiment that 4-5 years of a southern college experience is a better version of Disney world than can be found in the north and Midwest. Only rival are the California schools but those are approaching Ivy League level of competition to get in due to supply vs demand.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:49 pm to Windy City
quote:Neither are all the butthurt Ole Miss people.
7) Folks still aren't over Lane Kiffin. Our tour guide mentioned him several times.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:52 pm to Windy City
quote:Compare and contrast that to the Chemical Plants and ghettos of Baton Rouge.
4) What a setting for a college campus. The bend in the Cumberland and the tall cliffs on the river and the mountains in the distance and steep hills make for a really scenic daily existence.
Posted on 6/30/26 at 12:56 pm to ManBearSharkReb
quote:
Texas man learns about the difference between hillbillies and rednecks.
There are a lot of people from the modern South who don’t even understand the nuances of Appalachia vs Atlanta/Nashville/Bham vs Deep South vs panhandle and old Florida vs gulf coast vs low country vs Savannah/Charleston vs acadiana vs New Orleans vs the delta. There are similarities and common threads among all of them but also a whole lot of difference and nuance.
This place is pretty damn complex when you actually start to try to understand it. Hence I always kind of put Texas as something other than the South; it has enough of its own complexity and size to stand as its own thing.
Also why unless it’s a southern writer or director at the helm, most Hollywood representations of the South devolve into caricature pretty quickly.
This post was edited on 6/30/26 at 12:59 pm
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