Franklin Field named top college football stadium

Of the many great stadiums to take in a college football game, the ones that most easily come to mind are places like The Big House in Michigan, Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, and the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. If a Penn student was asked the question, he or she could probably name dozens of stadiums before thinking of the one right down the street.

Travel + Leisure magazine, though, recently named Franklin Field as one America's best college football stadiums. The Quakers' home field is the only non-FBS stadium among the 11 named as top destinations.

The rationale behind including The Frank on the list is due mostly to the field's illustrious history — the oldest college football stadium still in use, the site of the first ever radio and television broadcasts of a football game, and one of the few NCAA stadiums that can also claim to be the former home of an NFL team, which Franklin Field was for the Eagles from 1958-1970.

Others listed are less surprising, such as The Swamp in Gainsville, FL, Ohio Stadium in Columbus, and Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. After Franklin Field, the next most surprising on the list is probably Bronco Stadium, home of the Boise State Broncos and the Smurf Turf. Notably left off the list was Beaver Stadium in Happy Valley — I wonder what our state school friends think about that one.