Clemson's Memorial Stadium Ranked In Top 5 of College Stadium Rankings

Very few stadiums are ruled as able to compete with the atmosphere that is present at Death Valley

Clemson's atmosphere is still one of the best in the country | ALEX HICKS / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers will host the LSU Tigers on Aug. 30, and in a new ranking by USA Today, they’ll be playing in one of the highest-ranked college football stadiums in the country. 

In an article by Paul Myerberg and Blake Toppmeyer, Memorial Stadium was placed at No. 5 in the 25 best college football stadiums. The Tigers are the top ACC team on the list and missed out on the top spots from LSU’s Tiger Stadium, Penn State’s Beaver Stadium, Ohio State’s Ohio Stadium and Oregon’s Autzen Stadium. 

“To some, this is the ‘other’ Death Valley,” Myerberg and Toppmeyer wrote. “That’s way underselling how Memorial Stadium can wobble the knees of any visiting opponent. 

A stadium based on traditions throughout its history, including running down The Hill and rubbing Howard’s Rock before taking off to begin the game. The stadium has seen the Tigers ranked top 20 in the country for average attendance in 44 straight seasons. 

Two other ACC schools make the list with their respective stadiums. Florida State and Doak S. Campbell Stadium reached the No. 20 spot, although it is skewed from the team’s 2-10 finish last season that included renovations of the stadium. Virginia Tech and Lane Stadium were a spot behind at No. 21, calling Enter Sandman “the greatest introduction in college football.

Clemson beat out other top schools as well to enter the top 5. Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium was a spot behind at No. 6, Georgia’s Sanford Stadium took No. 7, Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium, Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at Florida and Kyle Field at Texas A&M round out the top 10, respectively. 

The Tigers’ season ended against the Texas Longhorns in the College Football Playoff at Darrel K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, which was slotted at No. 16. The only stadium that the team will play in that makes the list is Williams-Brice Stadium for its in-state rival, South Carolina. The Gamecocks’ venue is found at No. 17.

While the writers believe that LSU has the best college football stadium in the country, the Bayou Bengals will enter a hostile environment to open the year on Aug. 30, and Memorial Stadium will need all the help it can get if Clemson is to begin the year 1-0.