Rating Conference USA football stadiums: Who's the best?
As everyone in El Paso knows, any list of top college football stadiums has to include the Sun Bowl.
The most recent list is an online poll put on by CFB Campus Tour (@CFBcampustour), which saw the Sun Bowl make a run to the Elite 8 in the 64-team Group of Five division, where it was eliminated by Liberty.
Of course, the online poll could have just asked respondents to click their favorite university and the results would have been much the same, as before this November when UTEP and Liberty play for the first time, the number of online voters who have been to both Williams Stadium and the Sun Bowl Bowl likely approached zero.
To be fair, Liberty does have a nice stadium and inevitably stadium rankings come down to picking the fancy refurbished state-of-the-art facility with all the amenities or an old classic that exudes history.
With a new-look Conference USA starting up at the end of August, here are the top five (of nine) in the league.
1. Sun Bowl Stadium, UTEP
Where: El Paso.
First game: 1963 (Texas Western defeats North Texas).
Current capacity: 51,500.
What's best about it: The stadium is set into the Franklin Mountains, which loom over three of the corners in the stadium. The north side end zone seats offer spectacular views of downtown El Paso and Juarez.
2. Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium, Middle Tennessee State University
Where: Murfreesboro
First game: 1933 (MTSU 0, Jacksonville State 0)
Current capacity: 30,788
What's nice about it: It hits the perfect median between a smaller, intimate stadium and a large stadium that feels big-time. And when the game ends, you're a half hour from Nashville.
3. Arthur L. Williams Stadium, Liberty
Where: Lynchburg, Virginia
First game: 1989 (Liberty defeats Towson).
Current capacity: 25,000.
What's best about it: Money buys nice things and presumably the stadium is just going to get better with each renovation. The scoreboard is described as "massive".
4. Joe Aillet Stadium, Louisiana Tech
Where: Ruston
First game: 1968 (Terry Bradshaw led La. Tech to a win over East Carolina).
Current capacity: 28,562
What's best about it: The stadium is next to a large, wooded park that is an ideal spot for the pre-game tailgate.
5. Aggie Memorial Stadium, New Mexico State
Where: Las Cruces
First game: 1978 (NMSU beat UTEP).
Current capacity: 28,562
What's best about it: There's a great view of the Organ Mountains from the West side of the stadium. And they have Pistol Pete's 1888 Ale. NMSU has licensed beer, wine, hard seltzer and whiskey products.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at 915-546-6359; bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Who has the best football stadium in CUSA? Here's a list
