THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
Best in Texas stadiums: Can anyone offer a college football experience like the Aggies' Kyle Field?
By SportsDayDFW.com
The 12th Man shows up and shows up loud at Texas A&M's College Station football palace. But how does the Kyle Field experience compare to the Longhorns' #TurnUpDKR efforts? And where do Baylor's McLane stadium, TCU's Amon G. Carter fall in?
SportsDay's college bloggers went to work finding out which Texas colleges offer the best football atmospheres. Texas A&M pulled ahead after splitting first-place votes with Texas, and answers varied. Check out below to see how your team's uniforms stack up.
A recap of the voting process: On their ballots, writers cast one vote per team ranking them from best to worst. The top team in their individual polls receives 12 points, the second team receives 11 points, the third gets 10 points, etc. This year's voters: Kacey Bowen, Adam Grosbard, EJ Holland, Carter Karels, Ezra Siegel, Brandon Soliz, Brett Vito and Brady Vardeman.
1) Texas A&M's Kyle Field, 93 (7)
There isn't a close second to the masterpiece that is Kyle Field, which broke the state record with 110,631 fans at the Ole Miss game in 2014. The stadium is even in the running to host a soccer game between Manchester City and Manchester United this summer. No other college stadium in Texas is equipped to host such an event. -Carter Karels
2) Texas' Darrell K Royal - Texas Memorial Stadium, 86 (2)
While DKR is electric when the Longhorns are playing well, the 100,000-person stadium has struggled to fill up over the last few years. -Ezra Siegel
3) Baylor's McLane Stadium, 83
McLane Stadium truly is a beautiful place to watch a football game. You'll be hard pressed to find a better setting than on the Brazos River. -Adam Grosbard
4) TCU's Amon G. Carter Stadium, 73
TCU has an incredible stadium. With the capabilities to seat 50,000 fans, game days in Fort Worth are great. Some sections highlight the skyline of downtown while others overlook the gorgeous TCU campus. Anywhere you look is guaranteed to be a sight. The student section is located behind the visitor's bench, which gives fans the up close and personal interactions with players when trying to get in their head. Newly renovated in 2012, Amon G. Carter is a great place to watch football. -Kacey Bowen
5) Texas Tech's Jones AT&T Stadium, 64
Texas Tech's Jones AT&T Stadium has seen renovations for the past few years, including upgrades to its surrounding area. This offseason, the FieldTurf was upgraded and along with it came a new 'Double-T' logo that stretches from hash to hash at midfield. The video board has been a hit with fans and is perched over a finished, renovated north end zone plaza area with an upgraded Texas Tech logo in the grass area. -Brandon Soliz
6) University of Houston's TDECU Stadium, 51
Since opening in 2014, Houston's TDECU Stadium has offered an up-close and personal game-day experience and a sweet view of the city skyline. -Brady Vardeman
7) SMU's Gerald J. Ford Stadium, 45
Ford Stadium might be small, but it's an extremely nice stadium for its size. It should look beautiful once more fans pack the seats. -EJ Holland
8) UTSA's Alamodome, 35
UTSA's Alamodome Stadium serves Roadrunner fans during the season and Valero Alamo Bowl spectators each winter. The Roadrunners moved in just six years ago, but the hybrid dome/ conference center has a storied past, long playing home to the San Antonio Spurs. Its football setup seats 65,000 in downtown San Antonio. -SportsDayDFW.com
9) UNT's Apogee Stadium, 34
North Texas has one of the best smaller venues in the state in Apogee Stadium, which opened in 2011. The $78 million stadium has been a huge boost to UNT's program. The environment at night can be terrific when games draw more than 20,000 fans. -Brett Vito
10) UTEP's Sun Bowl, 21
UTEP's Sun Bowl Stadium is shaped like some cross of an oval bowl and a football - with a rounded turf at its core home to the field. It too hosts an annual bowl, but during Miners season the 51,000-seat stadium bursts with orange and navy. It's more than 50 years old with a 1963 opening. -SportsDayDFW.com
11) Texas State's Jim Wacker Field, 20
Bobcat Stadium was renamed Jim Wacker Field in 2003 - but the 35-year-old stadium has seen multiple redos over the years. Its white building façade is regal, and the field is surrounded by San Marcos greenery. -SportsDayDFW.com
12) Rice Stadium, 19
Rice's Stadium resembles its uniforms: no nonsense, blue and gray subtle colors, and that oh-so-fancy Rice font lining the endzones. It seats 70,000 but Owls fans never hit half that mark for a 2016 home game. -SportsDayDFW.com
Recap
TeamPoints
Texas A&M's Kyle Field93 (7)
Texas' Darrell K Royal - Texas Memorial Stadium86 (1)
Baylor's McLane Stadium83
TCU's Amon G. Carter Stadium73
Texas Tech's Jones AT&T Stadium64
University of Houston's TDECU Stadium51
SMU's Gerald J. Ford Stadium45
UTSA's Alamodome35
UNT's Apogee Stadium34
UTEP's Sun Bowl21
Texas State's Jim Wacker Field20
Rice Stadium19
Raba Kistner and Raba Kistner's Project Control were proud to provide project management as well as other services on this project. Read the full article: https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/college-sports/collegesports/2017/06/17/best-texas-stadiums-can-anyone-offer-college-football-experience-like-aggies-kyle-field