This was by far my most diversified year as 8 different states and 1 province were visited to see 14 new stadiums and 3 revisited ones! Pro, college, minor and major all combined to make it a great 2025 as these places are unique in their own right. The List stands at 279 stadiums that I’ve seen a game at out of 1358 qualifying venues. Let’s recap how it went:
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FAVORITE NEW VENUE VISIT: Lucas Oil Stadium…..Only the sixth stadium to receive a ranking of 80 or above. The home of the Indianapolis Colts is so good with the lowest category only losing 2.5 points (Food). Being downtown brings it close to a lot of great things in the Circle City, yet driving in and parking isn’t a pain. The facility is beautiful and the cost is reasonable as we went to a Week 6 game for just $49 (get your tickets before ‘surprise’ teams become good). Colts fans provide a decent atmosphere too, even if it isn’t as crazy or deafening as other NFL venues.
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WORST STADIUM EXPERIENCE: Island Federal Arena…..This wasn’t bad by any means, just sad. Stony Brook University took forever to get Stony Brook Arena essentially remade and as a result, spent years playing in what looked like a recreation gym. They finally got this beauty opened in 2014 and it just doesn’t bring in fans. An early January afternoon game only featured 500 or so on hand. I guess College Basketball, especially at the Mid-Major level, is a hard sell on Long Island when you have such a crowded Pro marketplace.
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MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT: SoCon Semifinals…..Despite the shenanigans at the NCAA level, I still love the sport of College Basketball. The sight of a bracket gets my attention and the Southern Conference has the perfect tournament. Ten teams, a true set-up with no stepladders (1 v 8/9, 4 v 5, 3 v 6, 2 v 7/10) and a geographically correct host in Asheville. It was the 14th year the city has hosted the event and they play in a building sized perfectly for it as well. I flew down to North Carolina to see this tournament and the first semifinal lived up to all my expectations. The quality of play between Furman and Chattanooga was so high and the fan bases were fully invested. Folks, sports aren’t just about the big boys.
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FAVORITE CITY: New Orleans, LA…..I was not only fortunate to be able to attend a Tulane basketball game during a work conference, but I also had a day to explore the Crescent City. I knew going in how incredibly unique NOLA is and also some negatives about the place. I didn’t experience any of that while visiting the Warehouse District, Frenchman Street, the Riverwalk and Uptown. Everyone was friendly and not in a “fake, you’re a tourist” kind of nice. It was genuine conversation and a welcome to our city. What a special place.
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BEST RESTAURANT: Big Kahuna…..Where else to get great Hawaiian food than in the middle of Kentucky! We had our fair share of excellent food while in the Commonwealth, including trying things unique to the area like the Hot Brown, Derby Pie, Modjeska and Bourbon Balls. The best thing we had though was Big Kahuna in Lexington. It’s a small place with so much flavor in everything. Emmmm that sticky rice I’m craving right now.
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BEST IN-STADIUM FOOD: Pork Tenderloin…..This is debatably the State of Indiana’s defining food item and I was thrilled to see it offered at the Colts game. After a long wait at the concession stand, the sandwich delivered with a fried cutlet going well beyond the bounds of the bread. That’s typical here. With lettuce, tomato and onion, it’s a simple sandwich that satisfied and kept me full through the game.
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BEST GAME: Johnstown vs Elmira (4 – 3 OT)…..There were several great games this year as eight of them came down to the final possession or inning. This one was the most exciting the entire step of the way. The pace was fast and furious with shots on goal seemingly every minute. The Tomahawks jumped out to a 3-0 lead, only to see Elmira make a comeback. The game went to OT and that’s where Nick Jarmain finished a 2-on-1 with a great celebration as the fans went home happy. Oh yeah, there was also a random Goalie Fight.
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CHAMPIONSHIP TEAMS: Bishop Guilfoyle Marauders…..High School Football you say? Yeah, I’m not that much of a crazed nut to also follow and pay attention to this, but Mansion Park Stadium in Altoona, PA is a 10,000-seat stadium that hosts the PIAA District 6 Championships each year. It’s on The List, so I had to make a venture out there. BG is a dominant team in the area and they racked up another District title in anti-climatic fashion, winning 62-6. Their bid to win a State Title came just short as they fell in the Championship game to Clairton.
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MOST UNDERATED FANS: Charlotte Checkers….While I feel like the AHL should be in mid-sized cities without a Major league team, this is how it should be when in a bigger city. The Checkers play in an appropriately-sized building that they have to themselves, there’s a lot of red and character in there and they have a decent, dedicated fan base. The place was packed not just for the Calder Cup Finals, but the Eastern Conference Finals too. When I attended a game there last March on a Saturday afternoon, there was about 5,000 there.
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COLOR AND CHARACTER: Ohio Stadium….The sight of scarlet and gray throughout the famed Horseshoe is indeed something to behold. My experience here was memorable and I couldn’t believe just how much is going on before the actual game. You have multiple FanFests, free food!, Skull Session and The Best Damn Band in The Land. Then when it comes to Dotting the I during Script Ohio…that was a Bucket List moment.
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THE WEATHER: 6 good days, 6 ok days and 2 bad days…..Overall, it really was a good year on the weather front. The several ok days didn’t impact the game because it indoors, I deemed them just ‘ok’ for touring purposes because it was chilly in places you were hoping it wouldn’t be (40s in New Orleans) or the opposite (87 degrees on October 3rd in Indianapolis). The 2 bad weather days included a thunderstorm delaying our baseball game in Lexington by a few hours. Thankfully no postponement. The other one was for hot and humid weather in Florence, KY as the Heat Index remained in the 90s much of the time despite evening first pitch. Toronto probably had the best weather as our tennis match took place with temperatures in the 70s. However, it was quite hazy because of wildfire smoke. Blame Canada.
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BEST SIDE TRIP: Churchill Downs – Louisville, KY…..Our family vacation to Kentucky was great and we got to see a lot between Louisville, Frankfort, Lexington and Horse Cave. Churchill Downs was my favorite activity as we pretty much spent the whole day at the track. The museum is thorough and interesting, then we watched the races through the afternoon. It’s just $10 to get in (kids under 12 are free) and it is so cool to sit in the massive Grandstand. There’s enough space that you can sit where you want and we went close to the track for one race and sat in the 300 club boxes for others. The kids surprisingly enjoyed it too.
Stadium and Arena Visits 