ESPN Big Ten Blog: Big House Only #6 Stadium in Conference
And in my experience, this mentality plays a role in some Northwestern fans' antipathy to Michigan and Michigan fans. There exists a sense of academic superiority over the rest of the Big Ten that serves as a balm against the sting of coming up short in athletics. Michigan, though, not only regularly bests the Wildcats on the field of play, but is academically superior in many ways as well.
But it's definitely the case. When I was at NU, I definitely risked getting into a shouting match if I mentioned being a Michigan fan. It's possible it has something to do with a lot of NU's biggest wins in program history were over Michigan: 1995 and 2000, specifically, but they still feel that the fanbase doesn't respect their team as an annual threat.
It doesn't go as far as Illinois's obsession with Michigan does for out-and-out jealousy, though. That shit is hilarious.
There's no weirder or more hilarious response to being a Michigan fan than that provided by a for no apparent reason irate Illini fan. That fanbase is actually more neurotic than Michigan State's. Good times.
They have grudges built up from, like 1986 and discuss calls that literally no Michigan fan remembers. It's just. Too. Funny. It's yet another reason why I cackled with glee when we won that game in...2001(?) on that botched fumble call. Every Illini fans' brains asplode.
That puts Beaver Stadium, the Horseshoe, Camp Randall, Kinnick (???), and Nebraska ahead of Michigan Stadium.
You can make plausible arguments for the Shoe. I don't know enough about Nebraska. The rest are... interesting choices.
My thoughts are, if you are going to rate the best stadium in the Big 10 it is hands down The Big House. History, tradition, memories, seats, classic design.
It looks as though they are basing the ranking almost purely on game day experience. In the regard, I would put The Big House #2 or #3 behind Penn State and Wisconsin. Ohio State behind us because of the antics that go on there.
Have ya been to Penn State? From the outside it looks like an erector set and they played top 40 music over the PA for an entire hour before the game.
I've been, twice. Both were night games. And while I'll agree the place is nothing to look at on the outside, inside the atmosphere is really really good. The fans are non stop on their feet and loud. I went in 2006 when we took out Morelli and Clark (HAIL crushing Penn State quarterbacks)....loud as hell. And I went in 2010 when the walk on QB made us look like pre-schoolers....loud as hell.
All that said, give me the Big House or GIVE ME DEATH.
Come on. Don't you know that when people from around the country make their lists of college football stadiums they'd love to visit, Iowa and Wisconsin's stadiums are always on it? Who wants to be part of the largest crowd anywhere in America when you can see . . . uh, a water tower?
lol I'm not even mad about this. ESPN just makes me LOL with how out of touch it is sometimes
"What school has the biggest fan base?"
"Michigan."
"Right. So we'll put them really low on our stadium list to piss them off and generate lots of page clicks from their anger."
Seriously. THis is how it's done. Relax.
I haven't given ESPN any clicks since bowl brackets wrapped up.
Meh. No surprise since Rittenberg basically said he doesn't like Michigan Stadium several times. If our biggest offseason outrage is being placed lower than we like in a filler beauty contest on ESPN that's trolling for clicks, then we've come an awfully long way in a year.
hahaha thats cute.
its really just a way to try and piss our fanbase off in order to gain additional clicks to their site. dont take the bait.
Definitely gives them a home field advantage.
If only we had listened to the "Save Michigan Stadium" people. But we just wouldn't listen. We wouldn't LISTEN!
/ shakes fist at luxury boxes /
/s/
I got suckered into clicking that stupid link and I hate myself for even giving it a single pageview, so the guy in the video said that if it was based on size and tradition then Big House is #1, the only knock was not enough sound for a stadium this size, then he goes on to say the improvements helps signicantly and at the UTL game it was as loud as anywhere he's been so..... fixing the only knock given and still 6th? troll so hard
Hey says, "With having the biggest stadium and the most traidition, Michigan could easily be number one on our list but as it is........they come in 6th."
Show me another stadium in the big ten featured on ABC every fall saturday throughout the 90s.
This is a joke.
I'm sure their justification for Wisconsin will heavily rely on jump around and Iowa for the good all-american feel you get when you play inside a mid-sized stadium in a cornfield
Iowa and Wisconsin get serious bonus points for crowd diversity...
This is a probably a case of the old "Michigan Stadium isn't as loud as it should be, so that means their stadium isn't THAT cool" drivel.
It's a really worn-out tiring argument. I personally think Michigan Stadium, with the added help of the athletic department, has gotten noticably louder just within the past 7 years.
I'm sure the shape of the stadium has something to do with it, but I think it's a minor thing. There is no excuse for how quiet the crowd can be sometimes. We have the largest stadium in the entire country and it should be in the top ten (maybe even top five) of loudest, but it isn't anywhere close.
What's bad - putting Michigan at 6th on that list. What's worse - the video they made telling why. It sounds like Brian Bennett doesn't really know why it's at #6, and he doesn't give any reasons to back up the ranking. The best line from the video? Bennett saying that Michigan Stadium is the largest in the country, and if they had done the rankings based on size alone, Michigan "would probably be #1."
ESPN makes these meaningless lists during off-seasons of certain sports so they can get people pissed off or excited with minimal effort and watch the web hits rack up.
If you are getting fired up on this and sharing it on message boards, Twitter, your FB or your blog to get others in on the rage, congratulations: You fell for ESPN's bit.
It's the offseason and football fans are starving for anything that relates to the sport. All sports web sites do things like this. It just gives people something to talk about.
It's the Bleacher Report method. Come up with some idea for a list of best or worst, have some schlub who knows little more or in some cases less than the average fan come up with the order off the top of his head. After the list is created come up with sliding scales and inane reasoning to back up the list. Throw in a few "shockers" that will arouse the largest fan bases, and sit back and watch people create ad revenue by clicking on and discussing the results. It's money in the bank, and it doesn't require any real thought or effort.
I guess I could see a case for Wisconsin, Penn State, and Nebraska. If they are basing it on gameday experience I guess OSU could be a good experience if you are an OSU fan, but if you are a fan of the visiting team let's just say it is not an enjoyable experience. Iowa is pretty cool and the fans are always extremely enthusiastic. Their student section definitley doesn't suffer from the apathy that ours does, but still overall the Big House has them beat. Personally I'd rank them Michigan, Nebraska, Wisconsin, PSU, Iowa, and then OSU.
Still not clear to me what these two get paid for.
the piped in generic music lowered our score
Brought to you by the network more concerned with boo-ya than integrity.
Ask any real fan for a list of the top five college football stadiums, and ninety percent of them will include Michigan Stadium. This list is laughable at best.
What are the criterion?
So if it were based on size, history and tradition, the Big House is number one, but somehow other "stuff" makes it drop all the way to 6th?
There's no way we're below the 6th loudest, or the 6th most aethetically pleasing, so what the fuck?
I guess the answer is; ESPN.
Nothing to see here. And Ohio has seats in their asylum that don't allow you to see half of the field, so screw ESPN, the BIG 10 blog and Ohio. The Big House is superior in every way to any other BIG 10 stadium IMO.
I mean that opening pic of the stadium in that video a lone makes the big house seem like its the best stadium in the world. Seriously, this guy is nuts.
First two stadiums I ever attended games at were The Big House and Notre Dame, man did I get spoiled. My 3rd was Penn State and I was disgusted by all the corporate sponsorships and gimmicky crap that seemed to never end. The place looks like they just threw up random extra seats wherever they could fit them so they could have a larger capacity and catch up with Michigan. The entire upper deck would shake when the fans started jumping up and down, I thought the place was going to collapse. The fact that they have them as the number 2 is a joke. Luckily the game I attended was the one where the D-Line knocked out Morelli then their second string QB as well so I got to enjoy running my mouth to the ignorant PSU fans.
So what is it about the Big House that makes everyone think it's so superior to the stadiums that fall above it? I went to Michigan, and I love my Big House, but I can see it. Biggest does not always mean best.
"Biggest does not always mean best"
Says the guy with a tiny penis.
I'd have agreed with this prior to the recent renovations at Michigan Stadium. Since then..... biggest AND best.
After the renovations, there aren't a whole lot of things other stadiums can claim to have that Michigan Stadium doesn't. I sat in the Jack Roth Stadium Club one game last season and can't imagine a better experience anywhere, if you're talking view, service, food, ect. Add that to the capacity, and the fact that the atmosphere has been amazing (I've heard nothing but rave reviews about UTL) recently, and I think you have a top-five college football stadium, anywhere in the nation.
Things Brian Bennett said Michigan Stadium has in its favor:
- Size
- History
- Tradition
Things Brian Bennett said goes against Michigan Stadium:
- It's not loud enough. Oh, except for that one time UTL when it was "as loud as anywhere he's ever been."
Yawn, I've heard this same re-hashed evaluation of the Big House about a trillion times. Nice work, ESPN.
Brian Bennett is a dingus.