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USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Where does Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium rank among SEC Stadiums?
The Oklahoma Sooners enter their second season in the Southeastern Conference in 2025. After a long run spent dominating the Big 12 Conference, it's safe to say OU is still adjusting to life in its new league. One of the many adjustments the program is making is the increased stadium capacities and rowdy atmospheres that college football's premier conference has to offer. In the Big 12, the Sooners were the toughest place to play in the conference. They had one of the highest capacities, and teams knew they had to play a nearly flawless game if they were going to come to Norman and upset Oklahoma. However, as great as OU's home field advantage is, just about every atmosphere in the SEC is a tough one to play in. The Sooners got an up-close look at places like Auburn, Ole Miss, Missouri, and LSU in 2024, and they'll visit South Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama this year. Blake Toppmeyer, who covers college football for USA TODAY Sports, decided to rank each SEC football stadium, taking a look at the many unique atmospheres in the nation's best league. Toppmeyer ranked Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium as the ninth-best stadium in the SEC. That puts Oklahoma in the bottom half of the league, but ahead of such schools as Texas, Arkansas and Ole Miss. Oklahoma's stadium fits neatly into the SEC tapestry, and the Sooner Schooner cruising the field paints a scene fit for the nation's premier football conference. With a capacity of 80,126, the 'Palace on the Prairie' doesn't match the SEC's top colossuses, but it holds its own. - Toppmeyer, USA TODAY Sports. The Sooners may not be able to match other SEC schools when it comes to stadium capacity, as many stadiums have over 100,000 seats. While Oklahoma has a passionate fan base, the insanity of a place like LSU during a night game isn't necessarily happening in Norman. However, OU has a football pedigree that almost no other school in all of college football can match. The Sooners are one of the truest blue bloods in the sport. With time in the SEC, perhaps Oklahoma can begin to acclimate and rise closer to the top of similar lists in the future. Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Aaron on X @Aaron_Gelvin.
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Where does Jordan-Hare Stadium land in USA TODAY Sports' SEC stadium ranking?
Where does USA TODAY Sports rank the home of the Tigers ahead of the 2025 season? If you were to ask SEC football players, current and past, most would tell you that Jordan-Hare Stadium is one of the toughest venues to play in. From the pregame eagle flight to many classic finishes, Jordan-Hare Stadium is a bucket list stadium for college football fans everywhere. How does the home of the Auburn Tigers rank among the rest of the SEC heading into the 2025 season? Blake Toppmeyer of USA TODAY Sports shares his take on the subject. Toppmeyer recently ranked every SEC stadium from the toughest to the least tough, placing Jordan-Hare in the middle at No. 8 out of 16 stadiums. When describing Jordan-Hare Stadium, Toppmeyer channels his inner Nick Saban, who once called the stadium "haunted" by saying that Jordan-Hare "uncorks a strange voodoo magic on opponents" due to some of the crazy finishes the stadium has seen in recent years. The most recent example came last November when Auburn defeated No. 15 Texas A&M in four overtimes. Other games of note include the "Kick Six", the "Prayer at Jordan-Hare" and the 1994 game against LSU, where Auburn erased a 23-9 deficit by picking off LSU quarterback Jaime Howard five times, returning three for touchdowns, in the final quarter to win, 30-26. Jordan-Hare Stadium ranks above several venues including Texas' Darryl K. Royal Texas Memorial Stadium, Davis Wade Stadium at Mississippi State, and Kroger Field at Kentucky, but is below several iconic venues such as South Carolina's Williams Brice Stadium, Georgia's Sanford Stadium, and Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, which ranks No. 1. Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
USA Today ranks Texas A&M's Kyle Field as one of best SEC stadiums
Texas A&M's well-documented success at Kyle Field since joining the Southeastern Conference in 2012 has placed the Aggies in the upper echelon of gameday environments in the league, according to a recent ranking by USA Today. That is a testament to the electric factory formed by members of Aggieland who turn every Saturday into one of the loudest environments in college football. Over 13 years in the conference, Texas A&M has never lost more than three contests at home in a single season, while also boasting a 61-23 overall record. The stadium's capacity of 102,733 ranks fourth in the country and first in the SEC, trailing only Penn State, Michigan and Ohio State. Per Texas A&M's record books, Kyle Field has averaged at least 100,000 fans five times since 2014. During the 2014-2014 season, the program set the single-game attendance record against Ole Miss, as 110,633 fans showed up with rally towels in hand to cheer on the Aggies. The Maroon and White faithful made the environment so loud that the noise in the stadium replicated a jet engine at 117 decibels. USA Today national college football columnist Blake Toppmeyer recently ranked all 16 SEC football stadiums, placing the Aggies at No. 7 on the list. "Kyle Field towers like no other, and it literally shakes when the noise swells," Toppmeyer said. "Love or mock the Aggie Yell Leaders, you can't deny they create a unique scene, and the Aggies entering to "POWER" is one of college football's best intros." Here are Toppmeyer's SEC football stadiums rankings: While Kyle Field ranks as one of the top environments in the country per Toppmeyer's list, the environment also ranks as the No. 11 most difficult place to play in the EA Sports College Football 26 video game. The multitude of rankings placing the gridiron in Bryan-College Station, Texas, seem to all be in a consensual agreement that the Aggies' stadium has consistently been one of the best in college football. Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Dylan on X: @dylanmflippo.
USA Today
02-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
USA TODAY Sports names Alabama football player as 2025 Heisman Trophy sleeper candidate
Under former coach Nick Saban, the Alabama Crimson Tide not only produced the first Heisman Trophy winner in program history, they saw three more players take home college football's most prestigious individual award. Mark Ingram was the first Crimson Tide player to win the Heisman in 2009. Derrick Henry followed Ingram in 2015, and Alabama players won back-to-back Heisman Trophies with DeVonta Smith in 2020 and Bryce Young in 2021. Could Alabama's next Heisman Trophy winner come in 2025? One USA TODAY Sports columnist is at least pondering the question. As the Crimson Tide head into the season with one of the best receiver rooms in the country, it's in large part thanks to the stellar play of 2024 freshman sensation Ryan Williams. Williams led Alabama with 865 receiving yards and eight touchdowns last year while playing in all 13 games. He'll enter his sophomore season with a new quarterback in Ty Simpson, himself a former five-star recruit out of Westview High School in Tennessee. USA TODAY Sports' Blake Toppmeyer on Wednesday listed five sleeper picks to win the 2025 Heisman Trophy. Williams was Toppmeyer's "Hail Mary" candidate on a list that included Miami Hurricanes transfer Carson Beck, South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers, Oklahoma QB John Mateer, and former Alabama commit and 5-star recruit Julian Sayin, the frontrunner to start for Ohio State. Toppmeyer said of Williams: "How's this for a Heisman narrative: Williams, at 18 years old, would be the youngest player to win the award. He introduced himself on the scene with a 177-yard receiving game against Georgia. He'll need to find more consistency as a sophomore to emerge as a contender. Alabama will have a new starting quarterback, and it's unclear whether that will help or hamper the pass game. Williams' Heisman hurdles include proving himself as the nation's best receiver within a landscape that includes Smith from Ohio State. Williams enjoys an advantage in playing for Alabama, which has produced four Heisman winners since 2009." Williams was the only non-quarterback to appear on Toppmeyer's list. While his Heisman candidacy is certainly a long shot (35-to-1, according to one sportsbook), Toppmeyer isn't the only college football analyst who has mentioned the Alabama star. CBS Sports' Carter Bahns actually named Williams a "frontrunner" for the 2025 Heisman after his breakout 2024 campaign. Veteran ESPN college football scribe Mark Schlabach highlighted Williams as well, and Bleacher Report included him on a list of 12 underclassmen vying for the award back in April. Bahns said last December: "That the 2024 recruiting class provided two instant superstars was a gift to college football, as Ryan Williams nearly went catch-for-catch with (Jeremiah) Smith on the road to immediate success. His ability in the open field was a stunning sight as he made ludicrous plays downfield to break away for explosive gains and touchdowns. ... Regardless of who lines up under center for Alabama, the star wideout will have his name in the Heisman mix." Alabama football schedule 2025 Alabama will open the 2025 season against Florida State at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee on Aug. 30. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on ABC. Here's the rest of the 2025 Alabama schedule with announced start times. All times Central Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama Crimson Tide news, notes and opinions.
USA Today
18-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
USA TODAY touts Michigan's stout defense, schedule for 2025 national championship run
USA TODAY touts Michigan's stout defense, schedule for 2025 national championship run Coming off a 2-4 campaign in 2020, it seemed unlikely that Michigan football was going to amount to much in 2021. Yet, 247Sports had the Wolverines as a dark-horse College Football Playoff team -- and that's when it was still at four teams. The article was met with much derision, and yet, Michigan prevailed -- beating Ohio State, winning the Big Ten, and facing Georgia in the Capital One Orange Bowl, a CFP semifinal that year. Coming off an 8-5 season, could the Wolverines be poised to make it back to the (now expanded) big dance once again? USA TODAY Sports' Blake Toppmeyer thinks so. And then some. Toppmeyer selected five 'sleeper' teams that could win the national championship this upcoming season, and Michigan football was one of the five, listed in a category 'Longer-shot sleepers to contend for a national championship:' Michigan finished last season by upsetting Ohio State and Alabama, and it did so while lacking a competent quarterback. Hello, Bryce Underwood, the nation's No. 1-ranked recruit in this past class. Underwood might not look the part of polished quarterback by September, but Michigan's forgiving schedule provides a runway for the Wolverines to improve throughout the season and make the playoff. Transfer quarterback Mikey Keene (Fresno State) provides cushion if Underwood needs some time. Michigan returned several starters from a stout defense. If it can get right at quarterback, it can make the playoff, at a minimum. While the core of the 2023 team is mostly gone, there are still some holdovers, including team captain Rod Moore, the safety who was injured with an ACL tear last year. With that in mind, even though this is mostly a new team, it seems odd to think that several players who were a part of that 2023 run couldn't replicate the feat, given that they've seen what it takes, at least in the four-team era. Still, Toppmeyer seems to have an accurate depiction of what the Wolverines are, especially compared to a lot of other college football pundits who merely look at the players who departed for the NFL without noting the returners, Underwood taking over at quarterback, and Chip Lindsey likely elevating the offense as the new coordinator. Additionally, as Toppmeyer noted, the schedule is amenable, at least if the maize and blue can be consistent on the road. The other teams that made the cut for Toppmeyer were LSU and Clemson at the top of the list, with Michigan and Ole Miss in the next tier, and Oklahoma -- Michigan's Week 2 opponent -- at the bottom.
