Comparing Game Day Experiences - The Rent vs Other Schools'

[Skiblets]

EDIT: Going to make this thread more of a global comparison thread for us to post into. Will stick it as well.

Was fortunate to make it to Boulder this weekend for the Colorado/ Idaho State game. Idaho State is the Bengals btw so points to anyone who knew that.

Tailgating - dispersed over campus and in outer lots. More relaxed setting at CU as the focus is less on parking hassles. The Rent is more of a party scene whereas CU felt like hanging out in a park. Relatively speaking it's a longer walk to the CU stadium and I believe the closer parking proximity at the Rent works against us getting people into the stadium on time. No time limit for tailgating at CU - the benefit of it being on campus

Getting into the stadium - everyone is wanded at CU. Much more of a hassle. They also have a 'clear bag' policy if trying to carry things in

Fans in their seats at kickoff - similar to the Rent. Might have something to do with the lines getting into the stadium. I snapped a pic but can't figure out how to post it here.

Team entrance - hands down CU is better. Ralphie leading the team onto the field is the best. Not sure why Jonathan doesn't lead our team out of the tunnel but an opportunity for us

Marching band - Pride of Connecticut is much better however CU fans sing along with fight song and alma mater much more

In game interruptions - about the same. Lots of ads, piped in music and presentations. CU presented awards to two legislators (legislators of the year) who sponsored legislation benefitting the school. A few ads for their Athletic foundation on the big screen as well...fund raising stuff.. with Rashan Salaam. Also noted teachers in one stoppage and a really cool program for grade school aged CU 'cheerleaders' with special needs. Much more of a family atmosphere. I think we get more football fans. CU gets more people connected to the university - see our Basketball/Football divisions

Stadium amenities - Rent is nicer. Folsom is a bit run down. Around the lower bowl they've constructed plywood barriers that don't allow you to see the field when walking around the bowl. Always thought that our attendance looks worse since people can watch from the scoreboard or at the top of the first bowl. At CU you can't watch the game unless sitting in your seat. They did however, have a pretty cool set up under their luxury boxes. They were built above an older indoor track facility - think fieldhouse. During the game, all can wander in there and grab a beer, some swag etc. with the game being shown on a large screen. Was super hot on Saturday so provided relief to fans while still being able to watch the game.

Great trip, glad I didn't witness Coach Fiasco's 17 second meltdown and looking forward to getting back to the Rent on Saturday

 

[CL82]

Was fortunate to make it to Boulder this weekend for the Colorado/ Idaho State game. Idaho State is the Bengals btw so points to anyone who knew that.

Tailgating - dispersed over campus and in outer lots. More relaxed setting at CU as the focus is less on parking hassles. The Rent is more of a party scene whereas CU felt like hanging out in a park.

Getting into the stadium - everyone is wanded at CU. Much more of a hassle. They also have a 'clear bag' policy if trying to carry things in

Fans in their seats at kickoff - similar to the Rent. Might have something to do with the lines getting into the stadium. I snapped a pic but can't figure out how to post it here.

Team entrance - hands down CU is better. Ralphie leading the team onto the field is the best. Not sure why Jonathan doesn't lead our team out of the tunnel but an opportunity for us

Marching band - Pride of Connecticut is much better however CU fans sing along with fight song and alma mater much more

In game interruptions - about the same. Lots of ads, piped in music and presentations. CU presented awards to two legislators (legislators of the year) who sponsored legislation benefitting the school.

Stadium amenities - Rent is nicer. Folsom is a bit run down. Around the lower bowl they've constructed plywood barriers that don't allow you to see the field when walking around the bowl. Always thought that our attendance looks worse since people can watch from the scoreboard or at the top of the first bowl. At CU you can't watch the game unless sitting in your seat. They did however, have a pretty cool set up under their luxury boxes. They were built above an older indoor track facility - think fieldhouse. During the game, all can wander in there and grab a beer, some swag etc. with the game being shown on a large screen. Was super hot on Saturday so provided relief to fans while still being able to watch the game.

Great trip, glad I didn't witness Coach Fiasco's 17 second meltdown and looking forward to getting back to the Rent on Saturday

As soon as demand goes up, I'd like to the see the Michigan seats become a permanent part of the stadium. No point in doing now though.

 

[Drew]

I went to the Charlotte vs Elon game last Saturday and also had the pleasure of missing the Fiasco that was Diaco's end game coaching management skills. Figured this is a good place to put a similar review:

Tailgating: kind of awesome. Similar to the UGA set up if anyone has ever seen a game in Athens. We were tailgating essentially right next to the stadium in the Greek tent lot. Lots of fun and nobody really getting in trouble for anything other than trying to sneak in glass bottles to the tailgate area. We walked by the security guards with 2 cases of Bud Light no problem.

Getting Into The Stadium: This was also a hassle at Charlotte, with the lines taking over 20 minutes to get from beginning to end.

Fans in Seat at Kickoff: Keep in mind the stadium only holds 15,000; however it was probably at 85-90% capacity at kickoff. It filled in within the first 5 minutes and was an announced sell out. We also sat one section over from Panthers TE Greg Olsen, who's brother is the QB for the Niners.

Team Entrance: unfortunately, I didn't really get to get a good view of this as we were still in line. No review but crowd seemed excited

Marching Band: Fine. Nothing serious.

In Game Interruptions: None. Solely band playing music with occasional loud speaker music on big downs. Pretty well done but easier when you don't really have to worry about TV commercials.

Stadium Amenities: so awesome. Stadium was built in the last 5 years so it really encompasses the feel of campus perfectly. Amazing view of campus in the background with the facilities visible near the stadium as well. The outside of the stadium was red brick- matching the face of the other buildings on the campus and blending in beautifully. The concessions had your typical stadium items plus Papa Johns, Bojangles, and more. Only thing where it falls short is no beer (but most colleges still don't and this wasn't expected).

Overall, great place to see a game. Ticket was $10 and they pumped Elon by 30+. Was a fun environment and most stayed until midway through the 4th when the Niners clearly just packed it in. Fun experience overall.

I'm going to Nebraska for the Nebraska/Oregon game this Saturday and look forward to writing one of these types of reviews upon returning. Nice work @Skiblets

 

[Brettloaf]

I will also be at the Nebraska/Oregon game this Saturday so I will post a similar review as well.

 

[Pudge]

If you are posting a Game Day Experience here ... YOU simply must post that the "Pride of Connecticut" is better than anything you saw. Leaving that out is serious deduction from your score.

And ... there is NO Beer at games at On-campus NCAA facilities. That is why you find none at most college games. UCLA? We had beer: the Rose Bowl was a long way from Campus. I think various schools play with this; but, you will find this also to be the case in CBB.

 

[whaler11]

If you are posting a Game Day Experience here ... YOU simply must post that the "Price of Connecticut" is better than anything you saw. Leaving that out is serious deduction from your score.

And ... there is NO Beer at games at On-campus NCAA facilities. That is why you find none at most college games. UCLA? We had beer: the Rose Bowl was a long way from Campus. I think various schools play with this; but, you will find this also to be the case in CBB.

I think you can sell beer now on campus. I'm pretty sure a whole bunch of schools started this year

Beer Map shows list of college stadiums selling alcohol

 

[Skiblets]

If you are posting a Game Day Experience here ... YOU simply must post that the "Price of Connecticut" is better than anything you saw. Leaving that out is serious deduction from your score.

And ... there is NO Beer at games at On-campus NCAA facilities. That is why you find none at most college games. UCLA? We had beer: the Rose Bowl was a long way from Campus. I think various schools play with this; but, you will find this also to be the case in CBB.

I can assure you that the two beers I drank at the game were purchased in the stadium. That's an old rule

 

[uconnphil2016]

I've only been to the Linc for a Temple game and Notre Dame Stadium. Nothing like an ND game. The Linc wasn't great, but much better than I'd anticipated.

 

[UConnNick]

The NCAA did away with the no alcohol rule at on campus venues many years ago. Some schools still choose not to serve alcohol at their own discretion, but it is no longer forbidden. You could always have it at off campus venues.

The rationale I've heard was they thought it was hypocritical to take ad revenue from beer companies yet not be able to sell their advertiser's products at the games.

 

[storrsroars]

Wifey bought season ticket for Pitt.

It's Heinz Field. It shares a transit stop with PNC Park, so one can train in.

Tailgating - you're in the city, and there aren't a ton of spaces. Supposedly there is a ban on RVs in the lots (not sure if this was for PSU only).

There is some tailgating, but there are also a dozen large bars in the PNC/Heinz complex. They were all jammed to the gills on Saturday.

Pitt honors a ton of service men and women every week, bringing them on field during TV timeouts.

The band is nothing special. The players stay on the field with band after wins to sing the school song.

Annoyingly, Pitt is one of those schools that adopted "Sweet Caroline" as a sing along (between 3rd & 4th Q's). Which makes little sense when the opponent's school also sings DC, as was the case with PSU.

There is beer sold. For PSU they brought out the good stuff. For the opener v Villanova, it was only 5 kinds of light beer. So I had water.

 

[UConnNick]

Baylor was a good example of no alcohol tailgating. It's kinda like what's the point? We tailgated in a huge grass parking lot where very few others were tailgating. There's apparently no rule against having alcohol at your tailgate, which we sure did, but the tailgating was very sparse. There was a row of fraternity tailgate parties going on along the street on one side of the parking lot, but on the other side of the street.

Back when we played them in Waco they were still playing in their old stadium, which was off campus and south of downtown.

Their student section was impressive...all wearing the same t-shirts. It was hotter than blazes that day, even after the sun went down late in the game. The stadium sucked which is why they have a new one. I suspect they don't sell alcohol there since the new stadium is on campus. I've also been to BB games there. The arena is very similar to Gampel, and about the same capacity.

 

[CAHUSKY]

.

And ... there is NO Beer at games at On-campus NCAA facilities. That is why you find none at most college games. UCLA? We had beer: the Rose Bowl was a long way from Campus. I think various schools play with this; but, you will find this also to be the case in CBB.

Not true. Nevada has beer and hard alcohol available at all football and basketball games on campus. And our AD is UCONN class of 93 alum Doug Knuth. Can't beat that. Go Pack.

 

[don356]

Game day experiences are all relative. When your team wins regardless of where they play, it's a good time. When they lose, not so much.

 

[Pudge]

Beer sales - in my viewing that map - is a hodgepodge of beer inclusion.

As noted, the SEC won't allow it. From the map, looks like the Pac 12 also has that; however, I am certain UCLA at the Rose Bowl did have beer back when I frequently went to their games. (off campus) As noted, 11 of the 34 home venues that have beer sales are at OFF CAMPUS sites - like Rentschler. And, ALSO, I think state law is part of this as well. High Prices and cut-off after the 3rd Qtr, imo, has largely kept the atmostphere at Rentschler tolerable. That can change with only a few poorly behaved guys.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Beer sales - in my viewing that map - is a hodgepodge of beer inclusion.

As noted, the SEC won't allow it. From the map, looks like the Pac 12 also has that; however, I am certain UCLA at the Rose Bowl did have beer back when I frequently went to their games. (off campus) As noted, 11 of the 34 home venues that have beer sales are at OFF CAMPUS sites - like Rentschler. And, ALSO, I think state law is part of this as well. High Prices and cut-off after the 3rd Qtr, imo, has largely kept the atmostphere at Rentschler tolerable. That can change with only a few poorly behaved guys.

Guys? No offense to the fairer sex but 75% of the people I see getting way too drunk at the Rent aren't guys.

 

[Pudge]

Guys? No offense to the fairer sex but 75% of the people I see getting way too drunk at the Rent aren't guys.

I guess I knew that was coming.

But ...for the combo platter of drunk & violence, I think we fear the guys more.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

I'm pretty sure that with state colleges it is up to the state whether beer (and or other alcohol) sales are allowed. As nearly all of the SEC is in the bible belt I imagine that plays a role in why beer is not sold on campus stadiums.

 

[Jerry1714]

If you are posting a Game Day Experience here ... YOU simply must post that the "Pride of Connecticut" is better than anything you saw. Leaving that out is serious deduction from your score.

And ... there is NO Beer at games at On-campus NCAA facilities. That is why you find none at most college games. UCLA? We had beer: the Rose Bowl was a long way from Campus. I think various schools play with this; but, you will find this also to be the case in CBB.

I go to Bryant-Denny once a year, wife is a Bama grad, and no self respecting man walks into that stadium without a flask full of bourbon. So while no beer is sold there is no issue with consuming alcohol.

 

[ktuck911]

What schools in comparison to UCONN have their football stadium 20 minutes or so away from the campus? To me, without that comparison, there's nothing to repair... If all the other schools mentioned have their stadium pretty much on campus, kinda hard for us to compare to them.. experience is way more intimate at those schools... makes for a better experience (reality check)....

 

[UConnFranklin]

I've been to Michigan, UCF, USF, Maryland, Vanderbilt games and of these the best was Michigan, by far. However, that was only because Michigan is in the center of Ann Arbor and the Sororities and Fraternities are all next to each other in the downtown area.

Stadium Location:
Michigan - On Campus on the outskirts. Campus is spread throughout downtown Ann Arbor. Very nice and exciting campus
Maryland - On Campus. Campus is very similar to UConn. Still like UConn campus better. Maryland looks a bit more urban and older. Some very pretty areas though.
UCF - On Campus (sort of) UCF is a huge square shaped campus. The stadium is located at one corner of the campus. Didn't really see many other college buildings around it. Kind of Florida blah.
USF - Off Campus. Raymond James Stadium. Home of Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Vanderbilt - On Campus Just of to one corner of the campus. From the stadium its just a short ride down Broadway to downtown Nashville with all of its bars. Very cool.

Summary: The on campus facilities created more energy because of the students.


Parking & Tailgating:
Michigan is scattered all over the place, even on a golf course (as a golfer I cringed at this). The large crowd 110,000 necessitates this. Parking lots are very far from the stadium. Some even were a 30 minute walk or more. Traffic in and out was really challenging. The main campus was close enough to the stadium that you could walk to it but it took about 30 minutes. Although the general tailgating was ok, what made this an exciting and special place were the houses of the Sororities and Fraternities. As you walked by, even wearing a UConn sweatshirt, we were invite to drink and party with them. Very cool and friendly.
UCF and USF we somewhat similar to the Rent. A Main lot with additional parking scattered across the street and around the stadium. Traffic was no real issue.
Vanderbilt also scattered all over the place. I tailgated behind my hotel which was next to the stadium.
Maryland was spread throughout the campus in a variety of parking lots. Tailgating was not as creative as that of the Rent. Because it was scattered it sort of broke up the party atmosphere.

Summary: I think the Rent, because of it large parking area creates a better pure tailgating environment than all of the above. But I think Michigan is very close or maybe even higher rated because of the campus location.

Stadium, game experience and amenities:
Michigan - If I were a recruit visiting the school on game day I would have been begging for them to sign me up immediately. What an unbelievable in stadium experience. But the seating was so tight. If the seating at the Rent was this tight, the Rent would be seating 60,000 instead of 40,000. The Rent's seating is palatial compared to this. The energy in this stadium surpassed all of my expectations with the possible exception of when we played them at the Rent or a few of our other sold out games of the past. But remember there were 110,000 people in attendance. Amenities were nothing special
UCF - I felt like I was in a giant tin box. Not appealing at all. Crowd was late to come in and was small. Less than 20,000 although announced as much bigger. No energy in the stadium. Granted they we a winless team. Amenities were nothing special.
USF - Beautiful stadium with a pirate boat at one end. Very pro-stadium appearing. Although there were 35,000+ fans in attendance the place looked empty and not much energy until the end when we beat them. But then all the energy came from UConn fans. Amenities were very nice here. The Rent could learn something from them.
Vanderbilt - Very underwhelming stadium. Especially for an SEC team. The crowd was late arriving and the stadium was only half or less filled with and crowd of about 25,000. Amenities were nothing special.
Maryland - Nice stadium, pretty good energy but they got the wind sucked out of them when we won. They were really down on Randy Edsall then. The stadium had one section on the visitors side that was a second level. It was so high and steep we felt as if we slipped and fell we would not stop until we hit the ground of the football field. Not a good place to sit. Amenities were nothing special.

Summary: In all the Rent stacks up pretty well, as a stadium with its amenities, despite it size. If the Rent were expanded to seat 55,000 to 60,000 it would compare very well to all. The Rent needs bar and table seating at the scoreboard end to really make it a special place.

Marching Band:
UConn 's band was by far, even including Michigan, the best I've seen. They are one of the largest, loudest and most energetic I've seen.

Team Entrance:
Michigan had the most intimidating visiting team entrance I've seen. There is one gate in the center of the field that both team enter the field through. Michigan comes out first with smoke, planes flying overhead, the band and students going nuts, runs across the center of the field through a hoop and sets up on the side opposite of the field entrance. Then the visiting team comes out and there is nowhere to run. They just sort of filter out. When I saw UConn come out through this their heads we down and all quiet. There were even any boos. No one even knew they had come onto the field. I could tell then, they were already defeated.

Other than Michigan no other team or stadium had anything over UConn or the Rent.

 

[Waquoit]

I agree, Michigan had an impressive entrance. But their halftime show blew. And the crowd started leaving in droves by the 8 minute to go mark.

 

[huskymedic]

What schools in comparison to UCONN have their football stadium 20 minutes or so away from the campus?

UCLA and Miami for two. I won't count UMass because they do have a stadium on campus. Let's not derail the intent of the OP though which could be fun if people stay on point (good luck w/ that on the BY).

 

[DarthGrumpy]

I can assure you that the two beers I drank at the game were purchased in the stadium. That's an old rule

What else can one legally buy along the route to a Buffalo game in Boulder? May explain a late arriving crowd.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

I've been to games at ND in the early '90's when I was in high school (tagged along with friend who was being recruited for an Olympic sport), Syracuse when I was at UConn in the mid '90's when Syracuse was good, a Michigan v. Purdue game while I was in Detroit for work around 2004 or so, and UConn games at West Point and BC.

ND circa 1990: Don't remember much as we drove out on a Friday and drove back to CT on Sunday, 24 hours in a car in 3 days is rough. Having never been to a stadium that big before (family got Jets season tickets shortly after), I just remember the size and the girls. I was 16, a 20 year old girl in an Eskimo suit would have had my undivided attention. Oh, and Stanford won and ND was ranked #1 going into the game.

Syracuse 1995: Drove up from UConn with a friend from HS who went to BC to stay with a friend who had tickets for the Cuse v. BC game. Was not a good day for the Eagles. The Orangemen had a good team that year, ranked and won a bowl game over Clemson. Back in the day when Syracuse was relevant, the crowd got into it and the Dome could be very loud. Did not tailgate; but, used a friend's ID to enjoy the before and after festivities around the Carrier Dome. Was a good weekend with friends.

Michigan 2003: Was out in Michigan for work and a friend got tickets for a game versus Purdue, both teams were ranked. We met at my hotel near a mall in Ann Arbor and took a shuttle from there to meet some of his friends who were tailgating in a golf course. It was fun. The walk over the to stadium was long; but boisterous. Lots of Purdue fans in the mix. The stadium itself was impressive; but, the amenities were below my expectations and I have no idea how 110,000 people fit in that thing. Literally cannot sit at all during the game. Hit Downtown Ann Arbor for food and drinks after. Overall, a good time.

UConn at BC 2004: Highlight was hitting the bars along Beacon Street on the way to the game as their is no tailgating in Chestnut Hill. Stadium was not that full (stated was 42,000) and there was a significant UConn presence there. UConn lost; but, I think that was our first year as full Big E members and BC had a good team that season and was ranked. Highlight was sneaking into some college parties in the Mods below the football stadium after the game. Would only go back to see UConn.

UConn at West Point 2008: While the tailgating was not as good as at the Rent, catching a fall football game along the Hudson River with the pomp and circumstance around West Point was truly a great experience. Went with a good friend and got their about 2 hours early drinking and playing games with other friends and thanking the Cadets and Army officers present for their service.

 

[Milo65]

Yale Bowl-Circa 1989. For you young bucks out there, UConn was a 1AA school (FCS equivalent) and Yale was either a low level DI or just became a 1AA school.
Yale Bowl: Classic Bowl stadium built in 1919. Very few amenities, bench seating, trough urinals, and tight quarters. Kind of on Campus, but really a long and sometimes dangerous walk for Yalies.

Tailgating: Awesome experience, would get there early in the morning and then drink kegs all day. Food may have been hard to find as a college kid, there wasn't much food. Maybe a couple of bags of chips, not much else. Can't tell you about the game day experience or even if the UConn won, as I rarely made it into any of the games. On a side note, more than once ended up in the infirmary later that week with a case of poison ivy from relieving myself in the wooded areas around the parking lots.