From the Horseshoe through Beaver Stadium, jumbo-size Michigan Stadium, the Rose Bowl and three different Memorial Stadiums, Big Ten football venues rank among the most iconic in the Bowl Subdivision.
But none are as uninviting as Ohio State’s Ohio Stadium. For decades, the Horseshoe has hosted memorable national champions and helped maintain the Buckeyes’ place among the sport’s most dominant programs.
There’s the annual “White Out” game at Penn State. Michigan’s record-setting capacity. The beauty of Pasadena at dusk. The unforgettable atmospheres at schools such as Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska and more.
From top to bottom, it’s hard to top the history and tradition found at these Big Ten venues. In terms of pure intimidation, though, there’s a very clear group at the top (and bottom). Here’s how USA TODAY Sports ranks Big Ten home fields from nastiest to kindest for visitors:
1. Ohio Stadium, Ohio State
Trips to the Horseshoe are basically a guaranteed loss for teams in and out of the Big Ten, unless you’re Michigan. (The Wolverines have taken two in a row at home in the series.) Since the stadium opened in 1922, Ohio State has been dominant at home, including a remarkable 55-3 record (94.9%) since 2016. The Buckeyes have turned the ‘Shoe into maybe the most hostile locale in the sport.
2. Beaver Stadium, Penn State
“White Out” games are among the most unique home-field sights in college football: Nittany Lions faithful across the board dress up in white tops to provide visitors with an unsettling, eye-popping backdrop. Combined with the deafening roar provided by 100,000-plus fans, this makes Beaver Stadium one of the elite settings in the Bowl Subdivision.
3. Autzen Stadium, Oregon
Autzen became a house of horrors for opponents in the late 1990s before reaching a peak during the Chip Kelly era, when the Ducks rolled off a 21-game winning streak before an epic loss to Southern California in 2011. Oregon has lost just once at home since hiring Dan Lanning in 2022 and gone unbeaten the past two years.
4. Michigan Stadium, Michigan
The largest venue by capacity in college sports? Check. But that’s selling Michigan Stadium short: This is the largest stadium by total seating in the Western Hemisphere and the third-largest in the world. It may not be the loudest in the conference, but it might be the most iconic.
5. Husky Stadium, Washington
There are few scenes in college football more aesthetically pleasing than a packed, rocking-and-rolling Husky Stadium with sailboats dotting Lake Washington – what locals call “sailgating.” Historically, Husky Stadium has been seen as maybe the loudest spot in the FBS when things are going right for Washington.
6. Kinnick Stadium, Iowa
In addition to goosing Iowa’s Big Ten chances – the Hawkeyes are 22-6 at home since 2021 – Kinnick is home to the best new tradition in the sport: Since 2017, players and fans turn at the end of the first quarter and wave to the patients at Stead Family Children’s Hospital. “The Hawkeye Wave” is already an indelible part of the college football fabric.
SPECIAL PLACE: Inside the unique Iowa wave tradition
7. Camp Randall Stadium, Wisconsin
At the end of the third quarter, Wisconsin fans will “Jump Around” to the 1992 House of Pain classic of the same name. The tradition started in 1998, took a very brief, highly controversial, one-game hiatus in 2003 and became a rallying cry during the Badgers’ development into a Big Ten powerhouse under former coaches Barry Alvarez and Bret Bielema.
8. Memorial Stadium, Nebraska
A decided lack of success at home in recent years dunks the Cornhuskers down this list. But when Nebraska is playing well, Memorial Stadium provides one of the best home-field advantages in college football. And even when the program is struggling, Memorial Stadium’s deep wealth of history captures your attention and is sure to be sold out.
9. L.A. Memorial Coliseum, Southern California
The Coliseum’s art-deco-influenced design speaks to the venue’s extensive history as the host not just for USC football but also multiple Olympic Games, the Super Bowl, NFL regular-season games and more. While it can be hit or miss, the Coliseum ratches up the intensity for opponents such as Notre Dame or rival UCLA.
10. Spartan Stadium, Michigan State
Spartan Stadium hosted one of the defining matchups of the 20th century during the famous (or infamous) 10-10 tie against Notre Dame in 1966. More recently, Michigan Stadkum turned in a dominant run at home under former coach Mark Dantonio, though that edge has diminished this decade with the program’s downturn.
11. Huntington Bank Stadium, Minnesota
The newest stadium in the Big Ten (for now, as we’ll see), Huntington Bank Stadium’s capacity of just over 50,000 makes it one of the coziest venues in the conference. The open-air site will also turn frigid and occasionally snowy later in the year, though that doesn’t stop locals from enjoying a Dilly Bar in the cold temps.
12. Memorial Stadium, Illinois
After suffering a major dip in attendance during the woebegone days of the late 2010s, Illinois has reestablished a home-field advantage since Bielema was hired in 2021. The Illini averaged almost 55,000 fans per home game last year, the program’s most since 2009. Illinois won six home games last season for the first time since 2001.
13. Ross-Ade Stadium, Purdue
We won’t penalize Purdue for incorrectly calling its oversize bass drum the “World’s Largest Drum.” (There’s nothing wrong with a little hyperbole.) Ross-Ade has been inhospitable at times throughout its history: in the 1930s, the 1960s, the late 1970s and most recently during the Joe Tiller era (1997-2008).
14. Memorial Stadium, Indiana
The home-field edge was alive in 2024, at least, when IU sold out its final four home games in Curt Cignetti’s debut and drew a record single-season total of 386,992 fans. While not the case historically, the Hoosiers showed that Memorial Stadium can bring the noise when the team is competitive.
15. SECU Stadium, Maryland
As a men’s and women’s lacrosse venue, SECU Stadium can be hard to beat. Football? There’s a national title banner hanging inside (1953), and SECU (long known as Byrd Stadium) also hosted Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip for an upset of North Carolina in 1957. But the stadium doesn’t wobble the knees of Big Ten opponents.
16. SHI Stadium, Rutgers
The environment can be intimidating, as Washington found out last September. Back in the program’s Big East days, then-and-now coach Greg Schiano helped Rutgers turn SHI Stadium (then called Rutgers Stadium) into a surprisingly unfriendly host. That hasn’t always been the case in the Big Ten, though.
17. Rose Bowl, UCLA
There’s the Rose Bowl game – one that has long defined college football’s postseason – and there’s the Rose Bowl itself, which shares an address with the bowl game but little of the pageantry and hoopla (or fans). UCLA’s home stadium is at least 30 minutes or so from campus, longer depending on traffic, and while the crowd will show up for rivals such as USC there is little in the way of an obvious home-field advantage.
18. Ryan Field, Northwestern
The Wildcats will play their games in 2025 at Northwestern’s soccer and lacrosse stadium while extensive renovations are completed at Ryan Field. When done, Ryan will be a slightly cozier, much more 21st-century venue “engineered to create a powerful homefield sound advantage at games,” the school said. We’ll have to wait and see where it ranks when complete.