Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, GA

Basic Information

Stadium: Stegeman Coliseum

Location: Athens, GA

Owner: University of Georgia

Primary sport: basketball

Year constructed: 1964

Listed capacity: 10,523

Date last visited: November 2022

Coliseum information: https://georgiadogs.com/sports/2017/6/16/stegeman-coliseum

Summary Review: 3 stars (out of 5)

The longtime home of Georgia basketball, gymnastics, and volleyball, Stegeman Coliseum has a reputation as being a large but somewhat sterile Division I college arena.  (Aside: in addition to watching basketball here, I also graduated here in their doctoral degree ceremony in May 2010.)  Unlike other UGA athletic venues that feature red as the primary color, black is the primary color here, so the setting is not particularly colorful.  Also, Georgia basketball is not well supported: when a major opponent such as Kentucky comes here, there is as much blue in the building as red and black.  The seating is split into upper and lower sections divided by a walkway and concourse.  The seating is graded gradually, so the upper section seats feel quite distant from the floor.  This coliseum has been renovated several times over the past couple of decades, and the result is a passable up-to-date arena.  After so many mediocre renovations, I feel that if UGA really wants a killer basketball arena, they will need to take some dynamite or a bulldozer to this one and start from scratch.

Detailed Review:

Gameday Atmosphere: The arena was only about half full when I came here most recently, and that has been my typical experience over many visits.  Stegeman Coliseum can get loud on occasion, but it is not known as a strong home court.

Seating: all chairback seats, some with cushions.

Field View: The lower bowl offers a good view.  The grade of the seating is not particularly steep, so the upper bowl really feels a decent ways away from the action, especially in the corners.  This coliseum is probably too big for its purpose, at least for most games.

Audio/Video: They have the usual video board above center court.  The audio system is fantastic.  The "It's Georgia basketball" yelled by the PA announcer whenever they got the ball after a timeout is still reverberating in my head as I write this review.

Concessions/Hot Dogs: Unusually for a sports venue, the service is cafeteria style: you pick up what you want and then pay as you exit the concession area.  They had a very limited selection of concessions, but the hot dogs were plump, had no artificial taste, and only costed $2.50.  The hot dogs are better than I remember as a student here 15 years ago.

Pedestrian Flow: seems much improved with the last renovation.

Parking: The university recommends fans park in the Carlton Street Parking Deck behind the coliseum.  It was free on my visit.

InfoCision Stadium in Akron, OH

Basic Information

Stadium: InfoCision Stadium

Location: Akron, OH (41.07258, -81.50835)

Owner: University of Akron

Primary sport: football

Year constructed: 2009

Listed capacity: 27,881

Date last visited: October 2022

Stadium information: https://gozips.com/sports/2017/5/25/athletics-facilities-InfoCision

Summary Review: 4.5 stars (out of 5)

InfoCision Stadium may be one of the toughest stadiums I have ever had to review.  On one hand, the stadium is the newest stadium in the Mid-American Conference and one of the newest in Division I college football.  The stadium's design seems near perfect for a small FBS football stadium.  It is very vertical, so even though I sat in the second (and uppermost) deck I felt very close to the action.  Yet as nice as the structure is, there are some very bad things happening here.  Akron's football program is very poorly supported: there were only about 2000 fans in the stadium on the warm late October afternoon when I watched a game here.  The fact that Akron was 1-7 when I came here and that Akron has a large commuter student population were contributing factors.  Almost all of the seating is bench seating with no backs, which is tough on those of us with back issues.  The parking arrangements seem nonexistent even though a gameday parking map is posted on Akron's website.  I bought my hot dogs 50 minutes before kickoff, but they were barely warm.  I wonder when they actually cooked them.  As I watched the game, I kept thinking how much worse my gameday experience would be if I was watching this game at the old Rubber Bowl, Akron football's former home and arguably the worst sports venue ever.  (Aside: if you don't believe me about the Rubber Bowl, check out the location of the stadium lights from the pictures in this Wikipedia article; literally every seat had an obstructed view!)  My final judgment: InfoCision Stadium is a very good stadium that is being used very poorly.

Detailed Review:

Gameday Atmosphere: The band and spirit squads did their best, but with only 2000 people in attendance the gameday atmosphere was pretty flat.  The surrounding buildings, highways, and convenience stores remind you that the University of Akron is an urban campus.

Seating: Almost all bench seating except for 2 small sections that are benchbacks.  There is also grass seating on the hill behind the south endzone.

Field View: The stadium's construction is very vertical, and therefore even seats that are well above the field offer fantastic views of the action. 

Audio/Video: The video board and audio system are as good as I have seen at any small FBS football stadium.

Concessions/Hot Dogs: The hot dogs have the fake smoky taste that I detest.  Also, mine were only barely warm when I ordered them just under 1 hour before the game.  Only 1 concession stand per side was open, but honestly that was all they really needed for such a small crowd.

Pedestrian Flow: The stadium seems well-designed and therefore my guess is that getting around the stadium is quite easy, but there were not enough pedestrians to really test the design when I came here.

Parking: I never figured out the parking arrangement.  There was nobody to take my money at the designated daily fee garage, which is signed as being for commuters.  I ended up parking for free in Visitor's parking on the other side of campus.