GREATEST SEC College Towns RANKED

[@conureron3792]

Back in my college days, Playboy refused to rank Gainesville/ UF in their party school rankings declaring that their rankings were intended for amateurs, said UF was a “professional party school”.

[@greenwave819]

lol nah. UT was always #1 on all major ranking sites

[@conureron3792]

@@greenwave819 - I doubt you were even alive in 1978 when Playboy made this announcement

[@krisguyton05]

They said that about LSU

[@marjorieanderson8626]

@@conureron3792 Playboy never made any announcement because they never ever had a list of party schools. This same "claim" has been repeated about literally every school in the country. Never happened to any of them.

[@conureron3792]

@@marjorieanderson8626 - I read in the magazine with my own eyes.

[@RiceDaddy-wo2fy]

You boys are so silly. ' I never been to the place but I once had a layover in Atlanta so.....' 😂. It's amateur hour and you guys are an inspiration.

[@hwyman01]

I’m an LSU fan but we def don’t have any of the quintessential college town feel at all. BUT nobody on this list goes harder. Now as far as cute college town feel I vote Auburn.

[@paulhuffstutler8765]

Since the city is splitting up, will LSU still be in Baton Rouge, or will it be in (The New) St. George?

[@paulhuffstutler8765]

I'm an Auburn grad...so I greatly appreciate the vote.

[@FlawpyTawpy]

Auburn has grown so much that it's starting to feel like a city more than a college town. It's still magical but not as magical as it was 15 years ago when I was in college. Still beautiful and a great place to raise a family, just grown so much in a negative way.

[@derekmiles2543]

@@paulhuffstutler8765the city isnt splitting. Areas south of the city are creating a new one.

[@WillPicou]

@@paulhuffstutler8765baton rouge.

[@hudsondean2812]

My list of best College Towns in the SEC 1. Athens 2. Oxford 3. Knoxville 4. Auburn 5. Fayetteville 6. Tuscaloosa 7. Columbia, SC 8. Baton Rouge 9. College Station 10. Lexington 11. Norman 12. Columbia, MO 13. Gainesville 14. Starkville 15. Austin (Big City) 16. Nashville (Big City)

[@hudsonstovall8119]

I hate reading this list. Every town is amazing. Hard to rank. Leave off the last two and I’d love to go to every other campus.

[@timbo7988]

Baton Rouge is top 3 and it’s not 2 or 3

[@willcampbell2485]

Knoxville over Oxford but yeah they were really high on the own team’s towns so they put Auburn and Tuscaloosa way too high

[@Wells306]

Not a bad ranking. I just wonder though how many lists are influenced on tailgate culture. Baton Rouge would certainly be higher, but as a college town in general- I struggle calling it that. 🤷‍♀

[@jimbograves1576]

Hard to argue this list but I think Baton Rouge is getting way too much love. Nothing is nice on the Mississippi River. Trust me.

[@wedgeworth63]

Tuscaloosa is a dump outside of campus.

[@reddpatriot2887]

The whole state is a garbage dump

[@ui_hoagie_1651]

@@reddpatriot2887just proves you don’t know shit about Alabama!

[@blackmambaram7034]

​@@ui_hoagie_1651every state has crappy towns. His opinion on Tuscaloosa is not an opinion about the whole state. I like certain parts of Bama but definitely not all just like I don't like all places in my home state, Louisiana.

[@austinmcbarner6648]

@@ui_hoagie_1651nahh he’s got it right

[@Joe-d3t1t]

Agreed. Tuscaloosa is absolute garbage. No amount of sorority houses will cover up the trash around the rest of Tuscaloosa.

[@eltigre2941]

Knew Austin would be low on the list the second this started. Austin has too much other stuff going on to give off a “college town” vibe…

[@Stopyhecap]

Knoxville is first. The way the campus is laid out and the Smokey mountains in the background, alongside the Tennessee River. Neyland stadium is a modern day coliseum.

[@greenwave819]

Knoxville... crappy in a lot of ways. However, the downtown/old city/market square/campus area is insane. all sports are good. Baseball softball, both basketballs Volleyball, soccer, and yah CFB... we've got the best mountains in the SEC... we've got the Vol Navy. how many places can you storm the field, take the goal posts and throw them in the river under the shadows of the Smokeys? preciate yall standing up for us!! tho... Knoxville is better than Auburn/Tuscaloosa/ and easily Athens. Knoxville is actually a decent sized place and the reason for so is because of CFB

[@SlimSavageBlanco]

I support everything said here 100% GBO

[@rtr6800]

Alabama fan but I’ll give it to Tennessee here. Hard to beat that setting, lots of fun stuff to do, beautiful scenery nearby. Looking forward to making my first trip to Neyland this fall-dreading that uphill walk to the stadium though. 😅

[@beebssqueebs3843]

Damn, the A&M hate is ridiculous. They said at least a couple of nice things about every other town.

[@BurntOrangeHorn78]

Collie Station is a dump. I have some very conservative Southern Baptist friends who left because it was so damn boring. Moved to Austin.

[@beebssqueebs3843]

@@BurntOrangeHorn78 hmmm based on your username I'm sure this is totally unbiased opinion.

[@Wells306]

@@beebssqueebs3843 If you're a conservative Southern Baptist, those "friends" may not be drinking, dancing, or having much fun in general. Not sure how moving Austin would help.

[@CiviTac]

I think college station, Norman, Tuscaloosa and Oxford are the best. I don’t know how Gainesville was considered better than Norman. Absolutely nuts

[@beebssqueebs3843]

@@CiviTac I've been to Columbia, South Carolina and have nothing but good things to say about that town too!

[@Hartmaniac]

College town and college football town are two different things. Lots of schools can party but the fans don’t know football and don’t show up on game day.

[@tb4326]

I couldn’t agree more! Athens is an amazing town (coming from an outsider). From its size, the people, what’s there, it is the best SEC college town.

[@rickrhoden1]

Only slightly below Oxford.

[@TheMCJ2011]

Clearly above Oxford.

[@rickrhoden1]

@TheMCJ2011 Perhaps we should let ESPN decide--oops, they have; ESPN named Oxford as the best college football town, imagine that!

[@TheMCJ2011]

@@rickrhoden1 Too bad this isn’t an ESPN-related video so ESPN’s opinion is irrelevant. Lmao at least you tried though 💀

[@rickrhoden1]

@TheMCJ2011 😅😂🤣 That's the best you've got? That it's not an ESPN-related video? Weak! The question of the best town is not restricted to a single video, LOL. The opinion of the giant sports network, with the resources and objectivity to fully compare all the towns, far outweighs the opinions of either of us homers!😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣😎

[@dstreet17]

A college town should meet the following criteria (aside from actually having a campus obviously) 1. The population of the town has to be less than 200,000 2. No professional teams 3. Cannot be a state capital

[@esava44]

lol. That is the most southern argument ever...."We need to have the best things...so we change the rules to make sure we have the best things." When in reality....pretty much everything in the south is kinda crappy.

[@dstreet17]

@@esava44 You seem awfully upset over an opinion. I promise everything is going to be okay. It's not going to hurt you.

[@shoob7979]

Yeah I was with ya till state capital portion cuz I PROMISE you Baton Rouge while being the capital it does have a small town vibe in how the locals go about their business and interact with visiting fan bases... Off campus that is and not while meandering into the stadium while walking through the TIGER BAIT CHANTS!!!! Which are mostly non threatening but certainly imposing

[@dstreet17]

@@shoob7979 That's a fair point for sure. I knew my last criterion would be controversial. But I like your argument.

[@shoob7979]

@@dstreet17 cool beans and most state capitals I'm guessing are amongst the most populated areas in their respective states which then plays a role in how those cities/towns overall feel in the type of connection being had between the college, it's students and the local residents. The smaller the feel of an area of like minded folks the closer knit and guarded those communities likely are which is why I gave my feeling on Baton Rouge while being a capital doesn't feel like such and even people within the state of Louisiana incorrectly assume New Orleans must serve as the capital being the main city providing the tax $$ as well

[@jjody4267]

1) Ole Miss 2) LSU 3)Auburn 4) Arkansas 5) Georgia 6) Tennessee (they lose points for being a city.) 7) Everybody else I’ll admit I haven’t been to the campuses of A&M, Texas, OU, or South Carolina though and some I haven’t been to in a long time.

[@PF-ye2ux]

Athens is #1. Its music scene blows the other towns on this list out of the water too (the ones that are actual college towns)

[@Mark-zx2bq]

I was about to call you out until reading your edit

[@rktay52]

Lived in Columbia, SC for two years. Loved it.

[@thewhamji]

I’m from Ga. I go to multiple games a year. And I’ve been to a few games at other SEC campuses. They all have a great vibe. Yes Vandy is last. But Mississippi state is hard core dude. LSU is legit crazy for their team. I would put Vandy last, everyone else number one 😂. Yes it’s a cop out. But I have no clue how to non-biased rate that

[@xaviergreeson9759]

Starkville was surprising, was an actual pleasant and unique experience

[@RiceDaddy-wo2fy]

I love Starkville

[@RiceDaddy-wo2fy]

Lovely

[@MJC__]

Best college towns are Athens & Oxford. Best tailgating & stadium experience is in Baton Rouge.

[@rickrhoden1]

I'll give you the stadium but not the tailgating, unless you mean except for the Grove.

[@MJC__]

@@rickrhoden1 Comparing tailgating around Tiger Stadium to the Grove is like comparing apples and oranges. Both are good but most all your national pundits declare Tiger Stadium as the best place to experience tailgating....I'll leave it at that.

[@rickrhoden1]

@MJC__ Actually national pundits rate Tiger Stadium best stadium and Ole Miss/Grove most iconic tailgating. College GameDay even agreed.

[@CinHotlanta]

I loved the Grove, but I was a little underwhelmed with Oxford - but frankly it had been talked up to me so much it was going to be a tough task to keep up. I expected more trees in town but it was wall-to-wall asphalt and street paint.

[@user-tz2zz5ij1s]

Fully agree with Austin. We live by the campus and you can easily forget that there is a college here. I went to A&M and you couldn’t take a pee anywhere without being reminded of A&M. Austin just doesn’t have that same feel of support that the smaller cities have.

[@TexasSiege]

I had the complete opposite experience as an undergraduate.. granted I was in a fraternity and UT was my life

[@user-tz2zz5ij1s]

@@TexasSiegeit’s not a knock against Texas. Austin just doesn’t revolve around the school and is a much larger city. I went to A&M, and College Station is 100 percent in on the Aggies. Days before home games campers are already set up around Kyle, the whole area has a buzz around it. It’s the same when I went to road games; Oxford, Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge just has a feeling in the air. The closest I’ve ever gotten that from a Texas game is the Red River Shootout (we all know that’s the real name). My wife went to Texas, and anecdotal as it is, she was blown away by the difference when I took her to an A&M game at Kyle. I love living in Austin, but it’s just not a college city.

[@roguemaster8099]

You are obviously biased 😂 not gonna let you sneak that in there

[@user-tz2zz5ij1s]

@@roguemaster8099you can call it biased, but when one city sticks out like a sore thumb, you can’t try to pretend it’s the same as the others. Austin is awesome, but when it comes to the Longhorns, the city isn’t all in like the other SEC cities. If you ever travel to other SEC colleges on game weekend, you’ll understand the difference. Austin is just too big to be all in. Most people here don’t care about the longhorns. Check the demographics, Austin has had more transplants over the last 10 years than pretty much any other city. There are Georgia bars on game day, Alabama bars, Michigan bars, Aggie bars ect where alumni meet up to watch games. You’re not going to find a Florida game day bar in Oxford…. The city is too big to be comparable, sorry if that hurts longhorn fans feelings.

[@roguemaster8099]

@@user-tz2zz5ij1s I totally agree. Chilli fest is the shit

[@blackmambaram7034]

There's absolutely nothing special about BR without LSU being there. We by far have the wildest fans and no one is fixing to party harder than them and no one can touch the cooking especially with tailgating. Aside from college vibes it's not a great town, and I live literally 10 mins from LSU campus. Never been to any of the other SEC campuses but I've been to most of their states. Georgia, Florida, and Tennessee are top of my list as far as appreciating the state itself.

[@bbqbros3648]

Norman’s in a transition phase bringing in more builds and business. Hopefully we can become one of the better places instead of middle

[@KingNarmer69_334]

That’s weird, isn’t Oklahoma St recognized for going hard? Might be mistaken, but a drug rep I used to work with told me they went to school at one of the Oklahoma schools.

[@billycornish6646]

Nah as an Okie OU goes way harder ​@@KingNarmer69_334

[@Wells306]

Yeah, I'd say Norman is in an awkward position of being college town while also still trying to be an OKC suburb. That said, I'd rather hang out there than Stillwater, even if Stillwater is a more pure college town.

[@TexasSiege]

Austin may have a million people but it doesn’t have an NFL NBA NHL or MLB franchise THUS the Longhorns are the biggest ticket in town. It’s absolutely a college town. As an undergrad at Texas I had an incredible college experience. You guys need to get out more

[@DavidBailey-h5q]

“I have never been to Austin” “Is Austin even Austin without Texas”

[@bryanmcdermott4204]

I like Starkville, but I like country. Also, Fayetteville smokes College Station. However, having seen games everywhere but Austin, Norman, and Columbia, MO, everywhere is good.

[@JustStaticPodcast]

I agree with Austin being so low. I’m from Baton Rouge but lived there for 2 years. Tailgating and just the college football atmosphere sucked. But granted like I said it was compared to Baton Rouge 😅

[@macebrindley8330]

You’re biased asf

[@Wells306]

Tailgating in Austin would likely be dead last in the SEC. Parking in downtown Austin is joke- much less trying to tailgate.

[@Mark-zx2bq]

Tailgating experience has completely changed of late thanks to Chris del Conte; is a great experience

[@SoonerinTexas-lk9rf]

Jake, again you rank Oklahoma to low, but I'm not mad at you just because you ranked Austin even lower than Norman!

[@caseyevans7537]

Knoxville everyday. Imagine that town without UT

[@RiceDaddy-wo2fy]

Imagine Starkville without Mississippi State

[@JustinBug81]

Love the segment!!! I’m from Boaz, AL and I grew up 45 mins from Jacksonville, AL and let me tell you a town and place all about their school is Jacksonville State University!!!!

[@Mox3712]

Love Statesboro! Live nearby and went to school there myself - represent!

[@DK-hg7wj]

Live in, NOT VISIT, Austin for 6 months and tell me the University isn't a deep part of the culture there

[@Wells306]

Being a massive city and not having a big 4 professional sport team helps UT's brand. As a result, they have a very large and over saturated t-shirt fandom culture.

[@liliamrodriguez3020]

Great video

[@MattLovesVinyl]

Athens, GA is the best college town in the country, and not just because it has more bars per capita downtown than any city in America (that's a true stat) or because of the insane rock and roll history. If you looked up "college town" in the dictionary, Athens, GA would be the definition. I also have a bias towards actual college towns as opposed to state capitals or big cities with colleges in them. Madison, WI and Austin, TX are not "college towns." They are state capitals that would exist with or without their colleges. Atlanta and Nashville are not "college towns," they, too, are state capitals, but they are also the biggest cities in their state. Here's my list of best COLLEGE TOWNS for the SEC: Best College Towns in the SEC 1. Athens, GA 2. Oxford, MS 3. Auburn, AL 4. Fayetteville, AR 5. Columbia, MO 6. Lexington, KY 7. College Station, TX 8. Tuscaloosa, AL 9. Starkville, MS 10. Knoxville, TN 11. Norman, OK 12. Gainesville, FL State Capital Cities with SEC Colleges in Them 13. Nashville, TN 14. Austin, TX 15. Baton Rouge, LA 16. Columbia, SC

[@stevegoins6426]

Athens is great. The problem is the politicians are destroying the town. That is why Watkinsville & Oconee County are growing so much from all the people and businesses moving out of Athens/Clarke County.

[@dan3196]

I'm a Washington Huskies fan I've gone to plenty of games at the greatest setting in college football I'm really excited to experience a real SEC game and see what all this hype is about. I've been to stadiums all over the West Coast like Autzen Martin and Husky stadium the Colosseum. The Rose Bowl.On TV Tennessee looks like one of the most unbelievable experiences so I'm going to try to make it out to Knoxville as I now live outside of Nashville. I don't see how it can get much better than that.

[@SlimSavageBlanco]

It can't. It's the best. Just be in decent shape. Don't go if you are obese. Lots of walking, some uphill. It's in the mountains. But it's number 1 and nothing is really that close. If every fan had the means and opportunity, the entire attendance would pull up in a boat on the river. Vol Navy is phenomenal and so underrated. The weather is usually perfect. The prices for parking and jerseys etc... are decent. The students are great. You will walk past 100s of mini parties happening in people's homes. Just walk up and introduce yourself and you'll be invited to hang out with them. Vol Walk is a mass swell of people that is kinda overwhelming. Instead of squeezing in that mess, find an elevated place to stand and look down into the Walk and it's much better. There's no way to go and not have a amazing time. Was there with a buddy one year and we had decided to go early and walk around the whole campus so we could see everything. I'd never actually taken time to explore it that way before. About 90 minutes before kickoff we had ended up on the side of the stadium where the river is. It was pretty hot that day so we stopped drinking and wanted to get some water in us before the game. We were leaning against a tree under shade when a normal white work van with a Budweiser logo on the side pulled up and parked about 30 feet from us. Absolutely nobody paid any attention to it. It was a beer truck dropping off beer to a vendor. But it wasn't actually. It immediately hit me that, it's changed now but before they didn't sell beer in the game, beer isn't sold out here anywhere or inside. So why did a beer van just pull up with all the windows blacked out? Well it just sit there idling for about 15 minutes. I thought I was Sherlock Holmes at first then lost interest when nothing happened. Then I was about to go find a bathroom all of a sudden the back doors of this van magically fly open. Now I remember smoke blowing out and the smell of "success" pouring out of the van and Ric Flair's entrance music playing around me. That's all bullshit. But the doors did fly open and out walks, as he ducked down so much he looked like he was gonna fall out face first, Peyton Fucking Manning! He had on a perfectly ironed pair of pants and his go to orange Tennessee polo shirt on with dark sunglasses. He looked like he was about to be sworn in as POTUS. He knows exactly who he is and what will happen if he just appears from out of the air on Game day right in the middle of 15,000 fans that are ready to watch the Vols play. It still impresses me that he actually did it the way he did. There were people everywhere and they all know exactly who Peyton Manning is. They all love him like they love their mother. He knew he would be surrounded and hounded by everyone for a Pic or autograph. Yet he was alone. He wasn't driving but they didn't get out. I am pretty sure I noticed him before anyone else. Nobody paid two seconds of attention to that van. I think that's why they sit there for a while. He wanted it to be like he just appeared there from thin air. I noticed who he was instantly and was laughing at him for doing it this way. It shows he cares about the fans and knows what they mean to him and the university. So after a few seconds I grabbed my buddy by the neck and just turned his head around and said "Peyton Manning just performed some David Copperfield shit and appeared before my eyes. Do you see him too?" Lol. He was like "Dude why are you squeeze........ HOLY FUCK THAT'S PEYTON FUCKING MANNING." He yelled the last part so loud the entire crowd of X number of thousands that we were surrounded by just stopped and turned towards us. Then chaos fucking reined. For a second I was sure Manning was going to jump back in the van and speed away like he robbed a bank. He would have had at least 4 or 5 people who would have jumped in with him though. Lmfao. Anyway, he gets completely circled by at least two thousand fans and they all were screaming his name trying to get his attention. It was fucking wild. I have never been the person who tries to get something from famous people so I just stood there. I took a few pics to prove my story then I got away from the chaos. To his credit he smiled and never said no to anyone. It was mostly kids that were all around him but it was still crazy seeing it happen in front of my eyes. My buddy still claims that he froze thousands of people completely still for a second just by yelling Peyton manning as loud as he could. I know that was long. Go to Knoxville. It will never be anything but amazing.

[@cynicalcb]

Starkville is way more of college town than Tuscaloosa is and I live right inbetween the two

[@BigDaddyDoc93]

GA southern and Athens are awesomel

[@Steeledawg]

Statesboro STD capital.

[@cjtyler01]

Baton Rouge is number 1 but only if you’re an LSU fan. I get that there are some wild fan bases out there but no one holds up to how wild the LSU fan base is. The atmosphere is wild, the tailgates are the best in the nation, and they have a Tiger on campus for god sakes. And on top of all that the LSU fans travel better than any other fan base. They will go into Oxford and take up half the town.

[@zabimaru404]

LSU fans surely can travel. My first experience with them was in 1989, on my way to Kyle I spotted a chartered bus parked next to the Memorial Student Center, people were laid out on the lawn like they'd been pre-gaming on that bus the whole damn way. It made an impression on me.

[@Wells306]

The atmosphere is awesome, but I suppose I have to account for the entire town experience. I struggle with Baton Rouge as a college town the moment you're off campus.

[@brandoncook3126]

Austin is big but it still revolves around the university. Add in the live music and bars and it’s a top tier college “city”

[@GeorgiaPure]

So many great towns. So much tradition. I think you got it right. Athens is such a cool vibe combining great football tradition, music, parties ... all of it centered on the campus. That's where the others drop. Small college towns are the best.

[@calebbmuse]

ofc the guy saying “i kiss my dad” is the one hating on A&M lmaoo Gig Em 👍🏼

[@erniecroes1723]

I experienced the Spurrier years in Gainesville and it was rockin’ from University Avenue to block parties around campus. I agree that after Urban left, the fan base has become less enthusiastic and the student base consists of mostly nerds now. It’s all about academics and Lacrosse now.

[@RiceDaddy-wo2fy]

Nerds? Nerds!!!

[@johnhaile5522]

He really just hates A&M. It's sad.

[@gregpace4676]

Vanderbilt is my #2. As a gator fan, Gainesville is #1 (Don't Back Down), but I live outside of Nashville and I can walk up to the game 5 minutes before kickoff after parking across the street and get tickets below face value. One year they would let you in the game if you had a Bunny Bread wrapper. One year a scalper had a shoebox full of tickets that he was selling for $10 for ten tickets (wouldn't sell less than 10). I bought 10 and gave 9 to a bunch of kids standing near the front gate, there were more kids, so I went back and bought 10 more so they could all get in. The stands are usually less than 1/2 full for the Florida game, so sit anywhere you like. I hate this new SEC schedule now

[@auspiciousman]

I’m from Louisville and am going to Alabama and for at least half the people I know going there, the scholarships are the main reason. Bama gives an insane amount of money. They give so much Bama ended up being cheaper than Kentucky for me. Good for me I guess.

[@captnjim44smith74]

Growing up in Auburn, AL, let me know of the thrill of rolling a tree !

[@CiviTac]

Norman is one of the best college towns in America. Without OU Norman doesn’t exist. I liked it better than Tuscaloosa and went to OU instead of Bama for that reason

[@josephhansard7469]

@CiviTac You're absolutely right. The campus is beautiful, Norman a complete college town vibe with its tree lined canopied streets, small town Main Street and Campus Corner just a short walk off campus with unique bars and restaurants. I'm sure people from SEC will be pleasantly surprised when they visit as I'm sure we will be when we visit some great SEC college towns.

[@CiviTac]

@@josephhansard7469 it fits right in with college towns in the SEC.

[@omarm06]

As a LSU alum I have to say Oxford at 1. Athens 2. And LSU 3.

[@bryancadents3559]

Go to College Station, check out campus, go to midnight yell, go to a game. Maybe y'all have already done some of those things. I went there so I know I'm biased (and maybe a little brainwashed), but College Station is a great college town and a great atmosphere. Outside the military academies, A&M produces officers by far than any other senior military college. A&M produced more officers in WWII than any other school, including the combined totals from West Point and Annapolis. The military history of A&M is a rich one, and it's all enshrined on campus. Go check out the hall of honor in the MSC, where you'll see displays of the 8 Aggies who received the Medal of Honor. Go check out the bonfire memorial. It all goes so much deeper than the yell boys that Blain likes to bash (even though they probably deserve it sometimes). The town around A&M wouldn't exist without the university there. Go grab a beer at the Dixie Chicken. Do those things, then re-rank the list. I'm not mad, I just want to open some eyes!

[@weswiltshire9727]

7:35 that’s clearly a shot of Jackson and JSU, not Starkville

[@jakenail99]

Agree with some of them guys but the best way to judge is not the team at its peak. It’s when the team is at its worst. That is where you see the real passion and fan base.

[@yungslim93]

I'm a UGA homer so Athens is definitely #1 for me, but I did love visiting Knoxville and Auburn, even though I hate their sports teams. Just great cities all-around. Although Tennessee fans had too much fun barking at me (literally) with my UGA jersey on 😂

[@SlimSavageBlanco]

What are we supposed to do when we see a Dawg? Should we moo or meow like the dorks in LSU or Starkvilke? It's a compliment TBH. We have literally been UGA's bitch in football for a minute(tbf let's not forget that before this recent run Tennessee had a nice 30+ years of slapping Georgia around) but I don't have any hate towards them at all. Fans are extremely respectful and very fun to hang with. You win with class. Not too many criminals pretending to be football players. Have given me many great laughs watching UGA destroy Florida and Bama. Georgia is an A+ college and Tennessee fans fully respect them. Florida and Bama can sit on a bag of dicks. And believe it or not but Auburn fans are just the worst. Got in a mini street brawl with about 20 of them in Knoxville probably 10 years ago. It started with just me and my buddy but a bunch of Vol fans that were complete strangers to me, jumped in and basically saved our ass. Only lasted a couple minutes. I remember someone yelling POLICE! and instantly every person stopped grabbed anything we dropped, gave one last "This isn't over" glance and walked our separate ways. Cops ran up and found no fight and nobody willing to talk. They were completely confused and didn't understand what was going on. They spoke to me but thought I was just walking past it and I said that 4 guys had ran towards the river wearing Auburn stuff. Cops said they were having problems all day with Auburn fans and that was that. Never got a chance to thank the Vol fans that saved my ass. If you are one and reading this, thank you. I was drunk and was gonna be beaten badly. But yeah, Auburn fans are dicks. And so was I that day. The fight was my fault as well. But 20 guys jumping 2 is pussy shit.

[@sylvainalarcon6636]

I wish this was better researched and more informational. Feels like it was just thrown together in the moment.

[@Wells306]

I haven't been to _____, but I know it sucks because I read it on the internet and I know someone who knows someone else who was a neighbor with this guy who didn't like it.

[@brandonmason3311]

Saying A&M feels “elitish” shows you have no idea what you’re talking about. You could say a lot of things but elitist isn’t really one of the words that describes the school culture

[@TrillHill]

So far I’ve been to 9. Here’s my list for those. 1. Oxford 2. Austin (I do agree that it’s nothing like a true college town which does kinda suck. But Austin is still an awesome city nonetheless) 3. Knoxville 4. Auburn 5. Tuscaloosa 6. Baton Rouge 7. Athens 8. College Station 9. Nashville

[@existentialcrisis245]

I'm amazed you put Athens #1. I've spent a lot of time in Athens. Get a few blocks off campus and it gets rough quick. Give me Knoxville all day.

[@paulbrackin1203]

Having been to 14 of 16 towns/GameDay (never even driven thru Austin and UK), as fat as towns I'd concur Athen, AU and Ole Miss make you feel your in a college town with Bama 4th. But as far as GameDay experience, all but Nashville has given me goosebumps. I will say, even if their team is losing, Death Valley esp @ night is pretty dope. Roll Tide.

[@br360guy2]

Interesting topic. The criteria seems to be vague and wishy washy at best but I love the discussion. Having said all this you nailed my hometown of Baton Rouge……I mean St. George.😂😂😂 Geaux Tigas!!!

[@FlawpyTawpy]

Been around Auburn all 36 years of my life and am an Auburn alum. As much as I love Auburn, it doesnt have the same feel as it did 10 years ago, its grown so much. Oxford still has it's magic and the most beautiful women in the south. Oxford 1, Auburn 2.

[@samuelleonard3006]

You could really put any in the Top 6 up there. Great fanbases even when their teams are down. Great venues and great places.

[@porterosbournejr.5083]

As a UGA alum…who has been to most of these places I would say the Oxford, Auburn and Athens are the top 3 and it’s been that way for years.

[@johnstarnes1925]

I agree.

[@rickrhoden1]

Also agree.

[@ktcat1]

LOL! I love you guys.

[@rickrhoden1]

No way Oxford is not #1 or at least tied with Athens. Obviously, the guy on the right shouldn't count because he has never experienced Oxford, its epicenter, The Square, or its suburb, The Grove. Oxford is the epitome of a college town in that the existence of its coolness is inextricably intertwined with everything Ole Miss. It also has all-in Rebel fans, beauty, small-town charm, great food, entertainment, historic notables like Faulkner, Grisham, the best known research pot farm, et al.

[@702TifosiGambler]

This the most SEC type video I've ever seen, you haven't visited a 3rd of the places.

[@robd1811]

everything coming up roses for the dawgs

[@drock13]

Sounds like they’d have to go back to Gainesville, for me it’s “Does this town survive without the Uni” I grew up a die hard Vol but Knoxville would still be there. Gainesville however would be lake city or worse if UF packed up and left.

[@zackerybarnett1890]

Tuscaloosa gets a bad wrap, it’s actually pretty nice outside of campus and they continue to add great river walks.

[@famous9681]

The size of the city definitely hurts the college football experience. I’m from Memphis but lived in Nashville and Murfreesboro. Nashville around the Vanderbilt area felt like any other day on Saturdays in comparison to Murfreesboro even with MTSU being a smaller school in a smaller conference you knew it was game day.

[@chrisdumas6911]

lol I was on that bleacher report shoot. Some of us had to go in with a smaller kit to just get it done

[@michaeleunice4754]

Not understanding having BR outside the top 3. Always rated as best college game day atmosphere and best tailgating. How is that not college football vibes?

[@MattLovesVinyl]

Stadium atmosphere is different than the town itself. Also, Baton Rouge is a capital city and not a college town.

[@darty9298]

BR is a shithole

[@blackmambaram7034]

​@@MattLovesVinyl you've obviously never been, only thing good about BR is the college vibes surrounding LSU. Most don't even pay attention to the state capital as it's going away from LSU campus. People go to BR to see Mike the tiger more than they go check out the capital. 😂

[@MattLovesVinyl]

@@blackmambaram7034 Not the point I was making. Differentiating between a college town and a state capital is important, because as Jake alluded to in the video, state capitals would still exist without the college.

[@michaeleunice4754]

@MattLovesVinyl it's really not, BR acts like a college town. Local businesses all of the city have college nights, and the bar scenes are hopping on Thursday nights. I also think they are definitely taking game day vibes into account of their rankings.

[@Wells306]

Kinda hard to rate places you've never stepped foot in, eh? Places like Tuscaloosa and Baton Rouge are dumps 3 steps away from campus. The campus in Columbia (SC) is not much different than Austin- it's just a smaller big city with a university slapped in the middle of it amongst a lot of government buildings. The hate on College Station makes no sense. This really boils down to whether the universities dominate nearly every aspect of their town: Gainesville, Athens, Oxford, Starkville, Columbia Mo, College Station, Fayetteville, Auburn, Tuscaloosa - I'd comfortably say yes Lexington, Columbia SC, Norman, Knoxville - Kinda sort-of or not really Austin, Nashville, Baton Rouge - I'd definitely say no

[@Rexthefunnyguy2014]

Can’t beat Lexington in the fall during football and Kenneland . Amazing

[@andrewlegrand7509]

#1 is obviously Columbia, SC! Michael Phelps understood why...

[@paulhuffstutler8765]

Austin is the state capitol. Austin would remain the same if UT left.

[@heman4ever747]

I’m biased because I went to UK, but I think Lexington should rank a little higher. If this list was made 5 years ago, I would agree with the ranking. But just in the last 3 years, with football and baseball success, I’ve never had more fun going to games. Heck Keeneland in the fall mixed with football at night is an all day. I’m not saying it’s a top 8 SEC town, but I can argue it can be 12-10 any given year.

[@kenashburn5473]

I understand what you're saying about Nashville not being a rabbid vandy town, but I also don't think Nashville becomes what it has if Vanderbilt isn't there.

[@shoob7979]

Im literally sitting down the street from N.O regional airport aka Louis Armstrong which is 20 minutes outside of the city of New Orleans and I'm it's most definitely a separate place from the college town and state capital city Baton Rouge where my LSU Tigers reside!!!! Completely different places just saying

[@nobleguy2019]

Tuscaloosa is good but its not top 4, at least on the 2 occasions I went

[@donaldbritt2210]

Austin is the live music capital of the world. It is major tech center for chips and electric cars... You guys have a lot to learn. If you have not been to a UTX home game pre-game scene, you cannot judge.

[@TexasSiege]

💯 agree! Austin is what you make it.. my undergraduate experience at UT was amazing and considering there aren’t professional sports in Austin (until MLS recently) the Longhorns are the biggest ticket in town.. I wouldn’t trade going to UT in Austin for any other college experience.. it was a blast..

[@Texan1212]

Austin way too liberal to be considered a top 10 SEC school

[@Hummer999xx]

On a different note. I ran into Lache Seastrunk at the Nissan Dealership in Richardson Texas. He was the RB target in 2010 along with Dyer and Lattimore.

[@SlimSavageBlanco]

Yeah Tennessee almost got him. He was a stud in high school

[@tonytaylor5218]

Auburn is and will ALWAYS be #1 in Family, Hometown and Hospitality!

[@mattwilson7344]

No way Knoxville isn’t top two at a very minimal. They are definitely number one but you could split hairs to say they are second. The fact they have Oxford, Athens, Tuscaloosa, and Auburn above them is wild.

[@MattLovesVinyl]

Oh, it's very believable.

[@jamestalley7357]

Agreed. Hate the vols but they get down in Knoxville.

[@trewright1482]

It’s the Brothers Gump man. They are Barn homers

[@MattLovesVinyl]

@@trewright1482 If they were Gumps, they wouldn't be Barn homers. Gumps are Bama fans, Barners are fans of The Barn.

[@willcampbell2485]

Tuscaloosa is an absolute dump. I don’t see how any of the other towns beat the Vol Navy tbh. And Tennessee’s fan base is the most loyal across all sports

[@victorgonzalez6200]

Ive been to just over half of these cities so i can't rank them all and everybody loves their own school (obviously). Baton Rouge may not rank top for all of your criteria but they go HAM for their tailgating. Only place I've seen where 300K+ ppl show up to talegate but only 100K go to the game while the rest stay outside the stadium to keep partying during the game. ESP during the late 2000s/early2010s... Total madness (in a good way). Everyone in the state seems to be a tigers fan

[@lsurouge]

If you need a master class on how to be a functioning alcoholic, come meet us in Vegas for the USC game.

[@kylekissam9472]

Y’all can’t rank these places such as (Gainesville) if you haven’t been on an actual game day.. like wtf

[@taresavigil]

Auburn, but my daughter goes there and the only other SEC towns Ive been in are College Station and Fayetteville.

[@marjorieanderson8626]

This conversation seems to be based around "game day" as opposed to day to day in the said "college town".

[@DYates-txag]

This list fell apart real quick. A college town means the college is the reason there’s a town. That’s really the only criteria. This makes the top of the list working from West to East: College Station, Norman, Oxford, Starkville, Fayetteville, Auburn, Tuscaloosa, Athens, and Gainesville. The debate would then need to be framed on fan base, tailgating, or how much the school means to the town now (has the town grown to focus on other things or are they still all about the school). I think the top 5 in no particular order are College Station, Auburn, Oxford, Tuscaloosa, and Athens. I’m an Aggie but I wouldn’t necessarily put College Station at the top. I’ve been to all 5 of these and all could make a case for #1. They all literally direct you to the university from every road leading into town.

[@greenbaypackerfan14]

Not SEC, but Happy Valley is as good a smalltown college football atmosphere as anywhere outside the south

[@jimmygriffin2754]

Wrong on Texas. Are you serious 101,000 fans, music city of southwest, food off the chart. And picking College station and Norman Okla over Texas is a joke.

[@JingleBell12]

Best college towns in Canada- 1. London, ON 2. Montreal, Quebec 3. Kingston, ON 4. Halifax, NS

[@ryddog23]

Y’all gotta experience Norman man it’s awesome

[@Mark-zx2bq]

No it's not

[@clemsonowns]

Half of Columbia, SC are Clemson fans. But Austin, Columbia(s), Nashville, Lexington…not college towns. Just cities colleges are in. Auburn is the definition of a college town.

[@MattLovesVinyl]

I wouldn't describe Lexington the same as I would Nashville or Austin. It has a much smaller feel, because it is smaller, and also, everything in Lexington revolves around UK. That makes it a college town in my book, and it's a great one.

[@StillaYouTubeGuy]

I’m obviously biased but Lexington is a hell of a college town..

[@jakepadgett5569]

I’ve gone to every single sec stadium for football and basketball games. Lexington is boring. One of the weakest tailgating scenes in the sec. Lexington isn’t even in the top 12 out of the 16 universities.

[@nathangullickson2357]

Never been to Athens, but a lot of Athens glazers in the comment section… maybe for a reason

[@williamtan3804]

Lexington should be minimum top 10. Both CBB & CFB being either championship contenders or at minimum competitive in the SEC makes it a sports bonanza 2/3 of the year, with Keeneland race track also to party.

[@shchorss]

Kentucky has never even been close to a championship contender in football

[@parkerj344]

Im just gonna gobout on a limb and say alot of this ranking is due to football program bias. Lexington at 14? I dont think yall ever been to Lexington. Where else can you get dressed to the 9s for a day at the horse track and then a football/basketball game at night.

[@greenwave819]

Athens prolly the worst. Stadium is away from downtown and student housing, everything is so spread out.... taxi or uber to go anywhere. I've been there a few times. All the students there hated how it was set up.... worst by far. Nashville is great for everything other than CFB. I will say that Auburn is awesome. Made it there a few times when the Vols played... at least half the people were welcoming. and after I stashed my Big Orange Jersey in a bush at Toomer's corner, at least 90% of the population was friendly. Why did I stash my jersey.. cause prior to that people were rabid about wanting to take from me my manning 16. seems like he's got plenty fans all over!!

[@thomasnewton7353]

1. Tallahassee cause FSU SHOULD be in the SEC, we SHOULD have won the 2023 natty, DJU WILL improve, I got my playoff tickets BOOKED. GO NOLES

[@TheMCJ2011]

I honestly expected LSU to be #1 lol