Rank The Stadiums: IVY League

[Wildcat80]

Following the big green post here is a copy of a ranking from doggers on ivy message board...to get things started. Yes Ivy league IS FCS.

1- Harvard Coliseum is gorgeous, historic and cozy enough to avoid the feeling of extreme emptiness during non-Yale games.

2- Yale Bowl: a classic. A special place during The Game, and quirky enough to enjoy against sparse Dartmouth/Columbia crowds. A sea of Yale blue seats is a sight to behold on a sunny day.

3- Princeton: ugly design but perfectly sized and oriented to maximize small Ivy crowds. Convenient to campus.

4- Franklin Field: the Ivy League Fenway. Too cavernous for current crowds.

5- Dartmouth- beautiful setting, appropriately sized.

6- Cornell/Columbia/Brown- the overbalance to the home stands is ugly. Visiting stands look like temporary structures. No crowd noise, no atmosphere.

[Wildcat80]

My Ranking--

#1--Princeton---no question about it they did it right. Demo'd old stadium and built similar looking modern facility. Even App State would be impressed to play game there.

#2--Yale & Harvard tie---both wonderful old stadiums. Yale getting better each year...at least where renovated. Grass field appeals to old timers & only for football. Harvard at least has turf. For The Game---best tailgating atmosphere anywhere.

#3--Dartmouth--Small town NH, on campus stadium with everyone close to the action. October games are priceless.

#4--Penn--yes Franklin never gets sold out but its neat to think what it once looked like. Nice views even with track.

#5--Columbia--visitor stands are high school but its gotta be nicer than Fordham and its the best FCS in NYC.

#6--Brown---only cause its in Providence. Worst visitor stands in league.

#7--Cornell--beautiful country.....but does anyone ever want to travel there by bus?

[bulldog10jw]

1. Yale -- obviously biased and remembering my youth when there was consistently 50k plus for Harvard, Princeton, and Dartmouth
2. Harvard - sitting on concrete keeps it from #1
3. Princeton - although I haven't been to the new stadium
4. Cornell
5. Penn
6. Columbia
7. Brown
8. Dartmouth

[Bogus Megapardus]

I'm going to give this one some thought. I haven't seen some of these places in a while (and I've actually never been to a game at Dartmouth although I've been to the campus). Right now I'm giving the nod to Princeton but not only for homer purposes. Still, Franklin Field remains a sight to behold. Those Allston Cantabs have righteous digs too but you sit on the concrete just like old Taylor Stadium. (Well, not just like.) A plus at Harvard because is no track (the track at Franklin is HUGE, Penn Relay-sized) but it looks like a Roman Colosseum. Columbia and Cornell both have striking landscape views.

[carney2]

I'm not gonna get in this one because I haven't seen enough of them, but

Franklin Field is one of my all time favorite places to see a football game.
Also partial to The Crescent at Cornell, but recognize its deficiencies.
I fall further out of love with Princeton Stadium each time I go to a game there. If I were pressed for a one word description it would be sterile.
I've been to Yale Bowl but never to a football game. It just looks way too cavernous for those week to week Ivy League crowds.

The other four are photo only, but Harvard Stadium looks like a gem.

[Bogus Megapardus]

I fall further out of love with Princeton Stadium each time I go to a game there. If I were pressed for a one word description it would be sterile.

It's a truly amazing facility, but the University does nothing at all to attempt to provide a "game day atmosphere." No color - just bland concrete. There's some artwork and a few displays, usually, in the entrance concourse, but that's about it. The Spirit Band with its orange blazers and straw hats is something, I suppose.

With such a great facility, Princeton could do a lot more to make it people-pleasing. Maybe it figures it doesn't need to do so; maybe there's faculty hesitance that's even worse than at Lafayette/Colgate/Lehigh.

[DJOM]

1) Princeton--Yes, I am biased however stadium is modern two-tier design. Fantastic place to play/view day or night games.

2) Yale---I was incredibly impressed with the Bowl. Impressed with facilities and good old time football feel.

3) Drake--Yeah, I know they are not in the Ivy. I am biased here as well. Beautiful stadium--and they hold the Drake Relays there.:D

[kdinva]

I'm always facenated/confused about the design of the main stands at Cornell.......the way the stands do not bend around the end zones, but continue in a "straight line"......who would sit down there, and have to turn 80 degrees to view the game?

http://www.cardcow.com/225284/schoellkopf-stadium-cornell-university-ithaca-new-york/

[BlueHenSinfonian]

While I've never been to Harvard or Yale's stadium, Franklin field has an aura that is unmatched by any college stadium I've been to. It's a shame Penn doesn't fill it up, as that would really give the place some magic, but even without the filled stands Franklin Field drips with history.

[TheValleyRaider]

I've only been to 4 of the Ancient 8, and none for the last 4 years, at least

Princeton - Love the overall design, even if it is a bit bland. Unfortunately, too big for the crowds the Tigers pull in now, but a very modern facility

Dartmouth - Classic two-sided stadium. The track made sitting low feel very far away, but a nice atmosphere

Cornell - It was cold and rainy the three times I went for football. The crescent is nice, if a bit too big. The visitor stands are standard aluminum bleachers, nothing to get excited about. There are some really nice vistas on the campus, but Schoellkopf isn't one of them

Yale - The Yale Bowl gives one the feeling of walking into the Coliseum of Rome. Of course, when I went there before the renovations, it was the present day version of the Coliseum. Very cool feeling being in there, but like Princeton, way too big for the crowds they get now (Harvard excluded, I think)

[ngineer]

I've been to most of these and Princeton is easily the best in terms of sightlines, accomodations, amenities. Harvard is a classic, with better close to the action views than the Yale Bowl, though the concrete is hard to take after awhile. Reminds me of old Taylor Stadium at Lehigh. Franklin Field is also a favorite having been on the field and track (ran the Penn Relays in 1969 & 1970). Despite the track, one feels close to the action. Columbia and Brown remind me of high school stadiums and Cornell seems odd, though the campus is beautiful.

[Wildcat80]

Semi-related to this......we need more CAA-Ivy crossover games. Our series with Dartmouth is coming back which is great for NH football. Penn & nova and Brown & URI have a classic annually. There is no doubt Harvard could play & beat CAA teams. They used to play northeastern. Yale et al need to schedule CAA or even Socon teams like Samford. Am I missing any others?

[bostonspider]

Well only because of the Yale-Harvard game and the beauty of the "original bowl", I am going to have to put Yale #1

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2412/5815103173_cea281f0a0_b.jpg

Harvard Stadium has so much history that it comes in at #2 for me, looking like the original 1896 Olympic Stadium in Greece

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3417/3476386193_86c0c7469d_o.jpg

#3 is Princeton. While it does not still have the same history as the top two, the new Princeton Stadium at least has echos of Palmer, and is a beautiful, if a little bland facility. I wish all the seatbacks were orange to give it some "life"

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/120/283126098_0cb9c19b90_z.jpg

#4 Penn. Big, brick and historical. I like this original double decker...
http://www.stadiumwallpaper.info/wallpaper/franklin-field-2.jpg

#5 Dartmouth. While smaller than it used to be, the remaining stadium has a nice sense of both enclosure and history..

http://static.thedartmouth.com/2011/04/14/photos/6396_article_photo.jpg

As many have said, the last three are all pretty lopsided, and I tend to group them together

Brown
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rW-OJ48AJBU/S_V94nDz2kI/AAAAAAAAOas/8GA6Qdl5ow8/s1600/brownstadium.jpg

Cornell
http://cfa.alumni.cornell.edu/images/CUStadiumzoom1.jpg

Columbia
http://manhattanspeak.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/columbia-university.jpg

[LetsGoNova]

Came away with a nice backfull of blue paint last year at the Yale Bowl. C'mon Yale - let's put some of that $20B endowment to work! My other comment is that the pennants ringing the top of the bowl should be at least three times larger.

I'd go:

Harvard
Princeton (pre-game at Cloister Inn, of course)
Yale (loses points for being essentially off-campus, and for general decrepitude)
Penn

I've only been in Dartmouth's and Cornell's stadia on tours, never seen games there, but I'd probably go Big Green over Cornell. I don't think anyone has ever been to a Brown football game, so default to Columbia for the race to stay out of the cellar.

[carney2]

Nice photo tour of the venues by bostonspider, but the view of Franklin Field omits its best feature - the colonial building that dominates the end zone in the open end of the horseshoe; and the view of Cornell's Schoellkopf Field shows the visitors' stands but completely hides the stadium's dominating feature - The Crescent stands on the home (or is it the visitors') side. Thanks, spider for the view of Brown Stadium. With that view, I don't think I've ever even seen a picture of it. Strange and somehow nice at the same time. If it's in any kind of good shape it looks like it could be a decent facility.

[bostonspider]

The two "missing" images for carney2..

Penn's endzone facility
http://www.stadiumsofprofootball.com/past/franklin750.jpg

and Cornell's somewhat bizzarely shaped home stand
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Scz79yv4zos/TfVrnxYXA1I/AAAAAAAADZE/ZR5j9YBl3AY/s1600/cornell+stadium+hdr.jpg

[Sader87]

Great pics boston spider....reminds me of looking at Dartmouth football media guides (my Dad did his medical residency at Dartmouth and became a fan--though he was always a Sader 1st and foremost) as a kid. I've been to 5 (sort of...the old Palmer) of these stadia through the years (in some cases it's been many years).

1. Harvard-- maybe the best stadium to actually watch a game (other than Fitton) in the country for its sightlines (as long as your btw the 20's). Haven't tailgated there in awhile though I hear (like most everywhere) it's become more draconian...short walk over the Charles into Hahhvard Square is also fun post-game.

2. Yale-- though I haven't been there in awhile, I remember the sightlines being rather poor...hard to top though for history/ambience.

3. Penn-- sadly have never been nor have I been to the Palestra though like Yale it oozes history.

4. Princestone-- haven't been to the new facility but like Lafayette of the PL, it's the standard bearer of the new generation. The one and only game I saw at the old Palmer, HC won on a last second kickoff return (ala Stanford-Cal).

5. Dartmouth-- sadly Dartmouth's different configurations of Memorial Stadium over the years never matched the tradition/success of Dartmouth football...as others have noted though, hard to find a better overall setting for a football weekend than Hanover in October.

6. Cornell-- another one of the 3 I've never had the pleasure to visit...HC never played these guys in the 60's, 70's or 80's...always loved the look of "the Crescent."

7. Brown-- yes Carney, people actually attend Brown games...it is a bit outdated but the home side provides a good view, the visitors side not so much....the East-Side of Providence is also a fun place to both tailgate and hang around post-game...ranked 7th of 8 here but a great atmosphere to watch a game.

8. Columbia-- the last of the 3 I've never been to and I really have no idea what it's like for a game...though you will be in NYC post-game (for better or worse).

[Bogus Megapardus]

My guess is that the Schoellkopf Field stands originally were designed to accommodate the 100 meter lanes and other track facilities.

[Ivytalk]

1. Princeton -- just about the perfect Ivy stadium, in terms of size, sightlines and conveniences. But the fans suck.
2. Harvard: Classic horseshoe, with best Ivy tailgating. Concrete seats make a "stadium seat" required.
3. Yale Bowl: Nicely renovated, and great tradition, but seats are too far from the action.
4. Penn: Franklin Field has you right on top of the action, but the turf ruined it for me.
5. Dartmouth: Nice little stadium in classic New England town.
6. Columbia: Not a bad place to spend a fall afternoon in far-upper Manhattan. But it's a hike.
7. Cornell: Stadium itself is nothing to write home about, but early October when the leaves change...
8. Brown: In the words of Bette Davis, what a dump!

[Bogus Megapardus]

Dartmouth has lights!!!


http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3aAYy706H58/Ti2US-U36gI/AAAAAAAAC-U/kNG_ftCbozg/s400/Higher1.JPG


http://biggreenalertblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/light-show-iii.html

[ngineer]

Great photos! I think Franklin Field may have been the first or one of the first stadiums in the country with a cantilever upper deck. Word is there is 'discussion' with Lehigh to renew the series. Hope to get back there soon.

[Bogus Megapardus]

Great photos! I think Franklin Field may have been the first or one of the first stadiums in the country with a cantilever upper deck. Word is there is 'discussion' with Lehigh to renew the series. Hope to get back there soon.

It was the first.

http://www.pennathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=1700&ATCLID=66184 (http://www.pennathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=1700&ATCLID=66184)




http://www.pennathletics.com//pics30/640/LU/LUWBYOTPMARSZTS.20041005150157.jpg




I got to play there and run there. I love our annual home-and-home with Penn. May you be so fortunate, lowly Engineers.

[Franks Tanks]

I played in all the stadiums except Cornell, Yale, and Dartmouth. I have been to the Yale Bowl to look around, but never for a game.

1- Harvard. It is the first college football cathedral in the US. It was the largest concrete structure in the world when built, and the first massive college football stadium. It was also instrumental in determining the dimensions of the filed. At one point a committee wanted to widen the field, but Harvard Stadium had already been built and it could not accommodate the wider field. Because of Harvard stadium the field was not enlarged. It is the clear number 1.

2- Princeton- Just a beautiful and modern facility. A bit sterile, but a great place to watch a game.

3- Penn- Franklin Field just oozes history. The Eagles beat the Packers here in 1960 for the NFL title. Big, but still has decent site lines.

4- Yale- The history and size make it special, but the site lines and gentle slope do nothing for me.

5- Cornell- Has a lot of character, and an interesting design.

6- Columbia- Relatively new and modern. The track detracts from the overall score, but has good site lines and modern features. I think I like this place more because it is one of the few places in the Ivies where we win consistently.

7- Brown- A little old and dingy, but the home side is massive and has good site lines. Deductions for the worst visitor locker room possible.

8- Dartmouth- I understand the scenery and the NH countryside are tremendous, but the stands look quite average.

[Wildcat80]

Well only because of the Yale-Harvard game and the beauty of the "original bowl", I am going to have to put Yale #1

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2412/5815103173_cea281f0a0_b.jpg

Harvard Stadium has so much history that it comes in at #2 for me, looking like the original 1896 Olympic Stadium in Greece

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3417/3476386193_86c0c7469d_o.jpg

#3 is Princeton. While it does not still have the same history as the top two, the new Princeton Stadium at least has echos of Palmer, and is a beautiful, if a little bland facility. I wish all the seatbacks were orange to give it some "life"

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/120/283126098_0cb9c19b90_z.jpg

#4 Penn. Big, brick and historical. I like this original double decker...
http://www.stadiumwallpaper.info/wallpaper/franklin-field-2.jpg

#5 Dartmouth. While smaller than it used to be, the remaining stadium has a nice sense of both enclosure and history..

http://static.thedartmouth.com/2011/04/14/photos/6396_article_photo.jpg

As many have said, the last three are all pretty lopsided, and I tend to group them together

Brown
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rW-OJ48AJBU/S_V94nDz2kI/AAAAAAAAOas/8GA6Qdl5ow8/s1600/brownstadium.jpg

Cornell
http://cfa.alumni.cornell.edu/images/CUStadiumzoom1.jpg

Columbia
http://manhattanspeak.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/columbia-university.jpg

Spider---I nominate you for "Best Post With Pictures"...nice job!!! I trust these pics opened up FCS/AGS eyes to the grandeur that used tio be Ivy football. I hope they can get some of it back. Very very few FCS stadiums nicer than HYP.

[Green26]

Following the big green post here is a copy of a ranking from doggers on ivy message board...to get things started. Yes Ivy league IS FCS.

1- Harvard Coliseum is gorgeous, historic and cozy enough to avoid the feeling of extreme emptiness during non-Yale games.

2- Yale Bowl: a classic. A special place during The Game, and quirky enough to enjoy against sparse Dartmouth/Columbia crowds. A sea of Yale blue seats is a sight to behold on a sunny day.

3- Princeton: ugly design but perfectly sized and oriented to maximize small Ivy crowds. Convenient to campus.

4- Franklin Field: the Ivy League Fenway. Too cavernous for current crowds.

5- Dartmouth- beautiful setting, appropriately sized.

6- Cornell/Columbia/Brown- the overbalance to the home stands is ugly. Visiting stands look like temporary structures. No crowd noise, no atmosphere.

The above list is my ranking.

Harvard is my favorite football stadium, of any football stadium at any level. It's colliseum look, horseshoe shape, proximity to the field, tradition and atmosphere. It lost a bit of its charm when it was modernized and the low level wooden seats were taken out. I loved how the fans in the lower level wooden seats were essentially on the bench and could mingle with the team. Look at the fans in long coats standing with the teams in the footage of the Harvard-Yale 29-29 tie. I played in it 3 times. The last time I played rugby against Harvard (alumni) outside of the stadium, when I was in my late 40's, I went to the stadium field to warm up. I could still remember many big plays, and almost hear the roar of the crowds in the late 60's and early 70's.

Yale is my second favorite. So large, so unique and so much history. The distance from stands to field between the 30's is a bit far, and takes away from crowd noise on the field, but it's special place. Played in Dartmouth's 10-0 victory over Yale in 1970. Signed my first autograph there as a sophomore, and some cutie alum's upper chest area.

Penn/Franklin Field is very old, cool and storied.

Princeton did a nice job with its new stadium, but I liked the look and tradition of Palmer stadium better. Of course, never played in the new stadium.

Dartmouth was my home field. Beautiful setting for football, with the colored mountains in the background in the fall and the neat little town of Hanover. The old stands look fairly cool from the outside, like Cornell's. It's too bad coach Teevens wasn't able to persuade the athletic department to move the track out of the stadium when the recent stadium work was done.

I like the other 3 too, and Columbia's new stadium is an improvement from Baker field. I always thought it was cool that the likes of Lou Gehrig played football at Baker.

Many great players and people have played and been fans in those stadiums. Many fond memories for Green26. Hopefully, more to come. Thanks for posting those photos.

[DFW HOYA]

I like the other 3 too, and Columbia's new stadium is an improvement from Baker field. I always thought it was cool that the likes of Lou Gehrig played football at Baker.


Apparently, according to this citation, Gehrig had left for the Yankees before Baker Field opened.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baker_Field#Baker_Field_history

[Green26]

Apparently, according to this citation, Gehrig had left for the Yankees before Baker Field opened.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baker_Field#Baker_Field_history

Interesting. Baker area purchased in 1921. Dedicated in April 1922, but not used until 1923. Gehrig played football in fall 1922, and left for Yankees in 1923. 38,000 seat Baker stadium built later.

[Go...gate]

A earlier reference to Palmer Stadium made me very nostalgic. Saw a lot of games there over the years with my late father, including a few sellouts (1965 against Dartmouth comes to mind, among others). Definitely old-school, but a wonderful place to watch a football game. The old Rutgers Stadium was also a very nice venue.

[Go...gate]

Spider---I nominate you for "Best Post With Pictures"...nice job!!! I trust these pics opened up FCS/AGS eyes to the grandeur that used tio be Ivy football. I hope they can get some of it back. Very very few FCS stadiums nicer than HYP.

Great post! Many thanks.

[Pard4Life]

Columbia should be everyone's #8... seagulls... seriously. Great site with much potential, but executed poorly.

Princeton is sterile, but the view is great, the field is crisp, excellent sight lines, and it's a real stadium.

The track and turf ruin Franklin Field for me, otherwise, the structure is amazing.

[DFW HOYA]

Where on the Web are good photos of Baker Field pre-1982? I know the football wasn't great, but with photos of Palmer Stadium out there, you would think there would be some photographic records of Baker Field.

And a follow-up question--after Palmer, which is the next Ivy stadium to be torn down? (Only one or two candidates, right?)

[Go Lehigh TU Owl]

I've been to four, Penn, Yale, Princeton and Cornell.

Princeton - clean with great sightlines, love the double decks, does have a MLS feel to it.
Franklin Field - historic, great architecture, clean given its age, parking is a problem
Yale Bowl - great classic design, plenty of parking and tailgating, so-so sightlines
Schoellkropf - cresent side is both cool and impressive, pressbox side looks a bit out of place, great views from the cresent

[bostonspider]

Where on the Web are good photos of Baker Field pre-1982? I know the football wasn't great, but with photos of Palmer Stadium out there, you would think there would be some photographic records of Baker Field.

http://www.deepsloweasy.com/photos/wolf%20family/colgate%20columbia%20game%20oct%201944.jpg

http://myinwood.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/columbia-baker-field-1936-final.jpg

[Franks Tanks]

Nobody went to Columbia games back then either.


I guess Brown or Cornell will be the next to go. Penn, Yale,and Harvard may live on for some time due to their great history.

[Bogus Megapardus]

Remember, you can get FREE BEER (http://universityandstate.wordpress.com/2009/09/21/so-this-is-how-to-get-people-to-go-to-columbia-football-games/) these days at the Columbia-sponsored tailgate. Only FCS school that I know of that offers free beer.

[GannonFan]

I don't get this love affair with Franklin Field. Saying it "oozes" history just means that the place is really old and not really well taken care of. For comparison, the Palestra "oozes" with history and yet is today still a fantastic place to watch basketball. Franklin Field is a pretty mediocre place to watch a football game - you sit far from the field, it's way too big for the crowds it gets today, the amenities are non-existent, parking/tailgating is pretty terrrible, and the place is really dark in many places (real poor lighting). It may rank high up compared to other Ivy League stadiums (I've seen most, but haven't been in any other than Franklin Field) but it's a shell (and mostly empty shell) of what it probably was 50 years ago.