College Football Stadiums: Texas Longhorns - Darrel K Royal Memorial Stadium

This time, our series takes us to Austin, Texas, home of the Longhorns. Austin is beautiful in the fall; and in the winter, and spring...and probably the summer too. I think I'm in love...

On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the best football experience of a lifetime), let's take a look at how Texas stacks up.

Friday Night: 10+

Wow, I don't even know where to begin. Here's some advice - if you can make it to a weekend game over Halloween you will not be disappointed. The girls down there are not shy when they dress up. I can't even remember all the places my group went to, so I'm not going to try. Here's a list from our friends at 10best.com showing their top 10 bars in Austin. No matter where you go, I doubt you will go wrong.

Tailgate: 9

In my opinion, tailgating can always improve and Texas is no different, though it need not change much. You can walk around with beer virtually anywhere in Austin. Once you are at the stadium, people get mad if you DON'T have a drink in your hands. Unfortunately I didn't sample much of the cuisine, since I was still feeling it from Friday night. But the smells were amazing. Again, more beautiful girls, if you care. The Texas cheerleaders were kind enough to stop and take a picture with us, if you care.

Pre-Game: 8

Respectable pre-game. The fans were excited, except half of them don't show up until after kickoff, which is weird. The band played and the fans sang the fight song. Bevo sat in the corner and did whatever Bevo does. When the fans shouted - TEXAS...FIGHT...TEXAS...FIGHT - from across the stadium, that was pretty cool. The entrance video was good and the energy was great. I wouldn't miss the pre-game if you haven't seen it before.

Atmosphere: 9

Texas knows football. Texas loves football. It's simply wild inside Darrel K Royal Stadium, one of the largest venues in all of college football.

Stadium Engineering: 10

Wow did this University get it right. Bathrooms and concessions on every level! Are you kidding me? I sat in probably the worst seats in the stadium and I didn't have to share a restroom trough with anyone. Amazing. And the video board is huge (is everything really bigger in Texas?). I loved the modern design and all the features of this stadium. Loved it.

Decibel Level: 8

With over 100,000 screaming fans I can assure you it is crushingly loud down on the field. If the Texas fans stay interested in the game, it will be tough for opposing teams to communicate. Sometimes I think the fans get a little lazy though.

Overall: 9.5

Texas people are loud and friendly. They love to eat and they love to drink. The bars are amazing, the stadium is amazing, the atmosphere is energetic, and I'm a sucker for southern accents. The University of Texas is a must see, and receives the official college football road trip stamp of approval.

Sources:

http://www.bevoart.com

http://www.10best.com/Austin,TX/Nightlife/Bars/

http://www.texassports.com/facilities/royal-memorial-stadium.html