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<blockquote data-quote="WeWillWhen" data-source="post: 1938873" data-attributes="member: 746923"><p>Expanded review/ranking of the four new B1G schools (from personal experiences):</p><p></p><p><strong><u>Town</u></strong></p><p>1. Washington -- Seattle is a wonderful city to visit. UW is about four miles from Downtown and Seattle Center, with a modern light rail line that takes you literally right to Husky Stadium. Campus next door is pretty. </p><p>2. UCLA -- As most people know, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena is 25 miles away from the UCLA campus in Westwood. Pasadena is a decently sized town itself, with a vibrant commercial area (Old Pasadena) that is a somewhat lengthy, but doable walk from the stadium; maybe 1.5 miles. The stadium setting in the Arroyo Seco is spectacular.</p><p>3. USC -- Stadium and school aren't located in a nice part of town, but it's still L.A., baby. There are several excellent museums right next door (reminiscent of Chicago's Museum Campus), the 'SC campus itself is kind of nice, and Downtown is just a short drive/few subway stops away. </p><p>4. Oregon -- Eugene is a pretty charming college town. My little brother attended there. Just as nice or nicer than most of the legacy B1G college towns. It's just not a major city like Seattle or L.A. </p><p></p><p><strong><u>Tailgating</u></strong></p><p>1. Washington -- there's nothing like Sailgating on a boat on Lake Washington before a game. The traditional layout for regular folks who arrive in cars is also good. Like the Rose Bowl, the setting is really pretty (when it isn't raining). </p><p>2. UCLA -- see above, re: setting. Most of the game parking/tailgating occurs on a golf course north of the stadium that is closed for game days. Lots of room to spread out, and the weather is almost always wonderful. </p><p>3. USC -- not nearly as scenic as Pasadena. Most tailgating occurs in paved parking lots. Kind of crowded. (Also, see comment on 'SC fan attitudes below).</p><p>4. Oregon -- I didn't tailgate on my trips here. Seems to me that there is not a lot of space for tailgating outside of the stadium. </p><p></p><p><strong><u>Stadium Experience</u></strong></p><p>1. Oregon -- Autzen Zoo lives up to its name. Fans are engaged. Smallest and newest stadium of the four by far, so offers the best sightlines, concessions and bathrooms. Gets ridiculously loud. There's a reason why the Ducks rarely lose at home. </p><p>2. USC -- Even after $200mm of renovations, the stadium still shows it age, and some of the seats are really far from the playing surface. But I have to concede that all of their pageantry schtick with the band, song girls, Traveler, Tommy Trojan is a pretty classic and great college football tradition to experience.</p><p>3. Washington -- Husky Stadium got fixed up a lot about 15 years ago when the NFL moved in for several years. Most seating is pretty close to the field, even in the end zones (the way our SEZ should be reconfigured). Gets demerits for the gray, dark, rainy weather that hits about half the time. I don't care how nice a stadium is -- sitting in the rain sucks. </p><p>4. UCLA -- due to bowl configuration, the majority of seats are in the end zones and FAR from the field. Generally uncomfortable bench seating. Place usually looks half empty except for the 'SC game. Concessions and bathrooms leave a lot to be desired. Very long tunnels into the seating area get scarily claustrophobic. But, man, the weather, palm trees and watching the sun go down over the mountains make up for a lot of the shortcomings. </p><p></p><p><strong><u>Dealing with Opposing Fanbase</u></strong></p><p>1. UCLA -- Fans here are generally mellow, friendly and not terribly engaged with what's happening on the field. Lots of eye candy. Most welcoming place for visitors by far. </p><p>2. Washington -- I found these fans to be the most similar to those we find in the Midwest. Generally friendly while the game isn't on; ignore visitors when the game starts. </p><p>3. Oregon -- Fans are generally friendly until the game starts. They can get pretty sauced and antagonistic towards visitors once the game starts, particularly towards traditional rivals like OSU, UW, USC. Due to limited seating capacity, visitors seem to always be in a small minority. </p><p>132. USC - in my experience, the most obnoxious, awful, antagonistic fanbase that exists in CFB, and worst of all, they are *proud* to be complete d-bags. Silver lining: when the visitors manage to win, the schadenfreude is delicious (I've been there twice when they lost to UCLA).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="WeWillWhen, post: 1938873, member: 746923"] Expanded review/ranking of the four new B1G schools (from personal experiences): [B][U]Town[/U][/B] 1. Washington -- Seattle is a wonderful city to visit. UW is about four miles from Downtown and Seattle Center, with a modern light rail line that takes you literally right to Husky Stadium. Campus next door is pretty. 2. UCLA -- As most people know, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena is 25 miles away from the UCLA campus in Westwood. Pasadena is a decently sized town itself, with a vibrant commercial area (Old Pasadena) that is a somewhat lengthy, but doable walk from the stadium; maybe 1.5 miles. The stadium setting in the Arroyo Seco is spectacular. 3. USC -- Stadium and school aren't located in a nice part of town, but it's still L.A., baby. There are several excellent museums right next door (reminiscent of Chicago's Museum Campus), the 'SC campus itself is kind of nice, and Downtown is just a short drive/few subway stops away. 4. Oregon -- Eugene is a pretty charming college town. My little brother attended there. Just as nice or nicer than most of the legacy B1G college towns. It's just not a major city like Seattle or L.A. [B][U]Tailgating[/U][/B] 1. Washington -- there's nothing like Sailgating on a boat on Lake Washington before a game. The traditional layout for regular folks who arrive in cars is also good. Like the Rose Bowl, the setting is really pretty (when it isn't raining). 2. UCLA -- see above, re: setting. Most of the game parking/tailgating occurs on a golf course north of the stadium that is closed for game days. Lots of room to spread out, and the weather is almost always wonderful. 3. USC -- not nearly as scenic as Pasadena. Most tailgating occurs in paved parking lots. Kind of crowded. (Also, see comment on 'SC fan attitudes below). 4. Oregon -- I didn't tailgate on my trips here. Seems to me that there is not a lot of space for tailgating outside of the stadium. [B][U]Stadium Experience[/U][/B] 1. Oregon -- Autzen Zoo lives up to its name. Fans are engaged. Smallest and newest stadium of the four by far, so offers the best sightlines, concessions and bathrooms. Gets ridiculously loud. There's a reason why the Ducks rarely lose at home. 2. USC -- Even after $200mm of renovations, the stadium still shows it age, and some of the seats are really far from the playing surface. But I have to concede that all of their pageantry schtick with the band, song girls, Traveler, Tommy Trojan is a pretty classic and great college football tradition to experience. 3. Washington -- Husky Stadium got fixed up a lot about 15 years ago when the NFL moved in for several years. Most seating is pretty close to the field, even in the end zones (the way our SEZ should be reconfigured). Gets demerits for the gray, dark, rainy weather that hits about half the time. I don't care how nice a stadium is -- sitting in the rain sucks. 4. UCLA -- due to bowl configuration, the majority of seats are in the end zones and FAR from the field. Generally uncomfortable bench seating. Place usually looks half empty except for the 'SC game. Concessions and bathrooms leave a lot to be desired. Very long tunnels into the seating area get scarily claustrophobic. But, man, the weather, palm trees and watching the sun go down over the mountains make up for a lot of the shortcomings. [B][U]Dealing with Opposing Fanbase[/U][/B] 1. UCLA -- Fans here are generally mellow, friendly and not terribly engaged with what's happening on the field. Lots of eye candy. Most welcoming place for visitors by far. 2. Washington -- I found these fans to be the most similar to those we find in the Midwest. Generally friendly while the game isn't on; ignore visitors when the game starts. 3. Oregon -- Fans are generally friendly until the game starts. They can get pretty sauced and antagonistic towards visitors once the game starts, particularly towards traditional rivals like OSU, UW, USC. Due to limited seating capacity, visitors seem to always be in a small minority. 132. USC - in my experience, the most obnoxious, awful, antagonistic fanbase that exists in CFB, and worst of all, they are *proud* to be complete d-bags. Silver lining: when the visitors manage to win, the schadenfreude is delicious (I've been there twice when they lost to UCLA). [/QUOTE]
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