Rank the SEC's College Towns

[Political Hack]

obviously we're going to have an elevated opinion of Starkvegas, so include it or don't. I don't care.

However, I'm interested in knowing what y'all think about the college towns around the SEC. Everybody always craps on starkville, but I honestly enjoy it more than other places that people brag about. I've sort of got them in groups. This is purely based on where I like visiting on football weekends.

Tier 1: Athens, Knoxville, Fayetteville, Nashville

Tier 2: Starkville, Baton Rouge, Tuscaloosa

Tier "I don't really like visiting your town as much as I do others": Gainesville, Columbia, Auburn, Oxford

Never been on gameday: College Station, Lexington, Mizzu.

[BrunswickDawg]

I think there is a difference between a "College Town" and a "City with a College in it"

Knoxville, Nashville, Fayetteville, Lexington, Columbia, and Baton Rouge all fit the "City with a College in it" - 3 of them are State Capitols, Lexington is in the top 30 largest cities in the country; Knoxville has 186,000 people, Fayetteville is the 3rd largest city in Ark and is a major regional city.
So, they are all in their own class. I rank them: 1) Nashville; 2) BR; 3) Lexington; 4) Fayetteville; 5) Knoxville; 6) Columbia(SC)

The other "College Towns" really were focused on the "college" until the past 20 or so years - and have started to boom as economic engines
1) Athens - the music scene alone makes it better than any other town.
2) Columbia, MO - most SEC folks haven't been there - and their game day scene may not be up to others - but the town is very cool
3) Starkville/Auburn - I've always seen these two towns as very similar. Auburn has gotten bigger, but Starkville is catching up
4) Tuscaloosa/Oxford - 2 towns that get a lot more credit then they actually deserve.

Never been to College Station - so I can't rank it.

[Jarius]

Columbia is one of the best college towns around. Their bar scene is absolutely legit.

[Johnson85]

I think there is a difference between a "College Town" and a "City with a College in it"

Knoxville, Nashville, Fayetteville, Lexington, Columbia, and Baton Rouge all fit the "City with a College in it" - 3 of them are State Capitols, Lexington is in the top 30 largest cities in the country; Knoxville has 186,000 people, Fayetteville is the 3rd largest city in Ark and is a major regional city.
So, they are all in their own class. I rank them: 1) Nashville; 2) BR; 3) Lexington; 4) Fayetteville; 5) Knoxville; 6) Columbia(SC)


I agree with the distinction between college towns and non-college towns. Love Nashville but it's not a college town. Didn't like Knoxville, but I think that's because I was expecting it to be more of a college town even though it's big. Baton Rouge is another Jackson to me. On campus is great and some of the bar scene is great, but too much jackson in between.

Haven't been to a lot of the other schools on game day. I will say I agree Tuscaloosa is overrated. Oxford is way overrated but it is a nice college town, although it's a lot nicer on non-fb weekends. I prefer Oxford to Tuscaloosa, but maybe that's because I haven't spent much time in Tuscaloosa outside of game weekends.

[Prediction? Pain.]

I think there is a difference between a "College Town" and a "City with a College in it"

Knoxville, Nashville, Fayetteville, Lexington, Columbia, and Baton Rouge all fit the "City with a College in it" - 3 of them are State Capitols, Lexington is in the top 30 largest cities in the country; Knoxville has 186,000 people, Fayetteville is the 3rd largest city in Ark and is a major regional city.
So, they are all in their own class.

I agree with this assessment. It's difficult to compare Nashville to Starkville or Oxford.

I haven't been to every SEC town, so I'm not qualified to do a ranking. But here's my two cents:

- Nashville is cool with lots to do and see, and Vandy's campus is really nice. But the city's way too sprawling. I lived there for a couple of years while in grad school and hated having to drive anywhere. Every time I go back for business or to visit family, the traffic is an epic pain in the ass.
- Starkville and Auburn are indeed very similar and generally both pleasant.
- Athens is as good as everyone says it is. I agree that this is probably the best "college town" in the SEC in the classic sense, at least among the ones I've visited.
- Tuscaloosa seems on par with any other random interstate town with a big college in it. Probably my bad for not exploring further, but frankly I don't get much of a different vibe from it than I do from Murfreesboro where Middle Tennessee State is. (For context, MTSU has the same enrollment as MSU (~22k), and Murfreesboro is roughly the same size as Tuscaloosa (~100k)).
- Knoxville sucks six ways to Sunday.

[Dawg61]

Greater Knoxville population is over a million.

[parabrave]

A friend of mine took his 15 year old daughter to the game this weekend for her first ever visit to State. Now she has been to Athens, Columbus Ohio, Oxford and some others. She loved the Campus, people and she like the small town atmosphere of Starkville and told me she could see herself at State. Now for other some towns. Oxford - Too many drunks and Fake people; Athens - Too many hippies and vagrants, panhandlers and druggies. Ohio State, beautiful campus but hasn't been there in the winter.

[Prediction? Pain.]

Greater Knoxville population is over a million.

To be fair, that population covers a dozen counties. The city itself is ~200k and the county it's in is under 500k. But yeah, point taken -- its sprawl sucks and contributes to a vibe is far different from places like Auburn, Athens, or Starkville.

[LC Dawg]

Auburn - Went for a baseball series after school was out and really enjoyed hanging out in the downtown area. Not being crowded probably helped me enjoy it more.
College Station - Nicest host fans anywhere. Didn't get to spend a lot of time in town but game day on and around campus was great.
Baton Rouge - When I was in school we had many fun trips to Baton Rouge. I like LSU fans. They know how to have fun.
Nashville - Nashville is a great city but its not a college town.
Knoxville - Spent time there 10 years ago on work. It seemed kind of dirty and campus did not impress me.
Tuscaloosa - Larger than Starkville but about the same in regards to things to do. Jam packed with dickheads.
Oxford - Can't even try to enjoy the town because I know I hate the people.

I plan to go to Fayetteville next year and hope to go to Lexington soon. I hate I missed the opportunity to go to Athens last year but I couldn't make it work.

[Bully13]

I've only been to two other SEC stadiums. (I don't count Oxfart). Bamer & Knoxville. Went to the UT / FL game the year UT won the natty. I was blown away as to how much better the walk to the stadium was than what was going on at Starkville at the time. Same goes regarding Bamer the year we beat them there when JJ ran all over their ass. Both of those trips reminded me of how much improvement Vegas needed.

Have we improved in this area these days?

[BrunswickDawg]

I've only been to two other SEC stadiums. (I don't count Oxfart). Bamer & Knoxville. Went to the UT / FL game the year UT won the natty. I was blown away as to how much better the walk to the stadium was than what was going on at Starkville at the time. Same goes regarding Bamer the year we beat them there when JJ ran all over their ass. Both of those trips reminded me of how much improvement Vegas needed.

Have we improved in this area these days?

Dude, the difference in Starkville/MSU in 1997/8 to Starkville/MSU in 2018 is almost indescribable. You have to see it to believe it.

[BrunswickDawg]

A friend of mine took his 15 year old daughter to the game this weekend for her first ever visit to State. Now she has been to Athens, Columbus Ohio, Oxford and some others. She loved the Campus, people and she like the small town atmosphere of Starkville and told me she could see herself at State. Now for other some towns. Oxford - Too many drunks and Fake people; Athens - Too many hippies and vagrants, panhandlers and druggies. Ohio State, beautiful campus but hasn't been there in the winter.

That is what happened with both me and my daughter. I grew up going to Athens and Auburn regularly. It only took 1 visit to Starkville and I knew it was home.
My daughter had looked at UF & UGA - but 15 minutes into the tour of the MSU campus she turned to me and said "Is it super corny if I just decided this is where I want to be? It feels like home." Her only other visit to Starkville was when she was 9.

[RocketDawg]

I think there is a difference between a "College Town" and a "City with a College in it"

Knoxville, Nashville, Fayetteville, Lexington, Columbia, and Baton Rouge all fit the "City with a College in it" - 3 of them are State Capitols, Lexington is in the top 30 largest cities in the country; Knoxville has 186,000 people, Fayetteville is the 3rd largest city in Ark and is a major regional city.
So, they are all in their own class. I rank them: 1) Nashville; 2) BR; 3) Lexington; 4) Fayetteville; 5) Knoxville; 6) Columbia(SC)

The other "College Towns" really were focused on the "college" until the past 20 or so years - and have started to boom as economic engines
1) Athens - the music scene alone makes it better than any other town.
2) Columbia, MO - most SEC folks haven't been there - and their game day scene may not be up to others - but the town is very cool
3) Starkville/Auburn - I've always seen these two towns as very similar. Auburn has gotten bigger, but Starkville is catching up
4) Tuscaloosa/Oxford - 2 towns that get a lot more credit then they actually deserve.

Never been to College Station - so I can't rank it.

Just a few points ... Lexington is the 30th largest city in the nation? You might have it confused with Louisville (they're 29th). It's only 321,000 and they incorportated the entire county; Louisville did too though. Knoxville only has 185000 or so, but the metro is near 1M. Never been to Fayetteville, but I'm not sure 85,000 qualifies as a major city; their metro is pretty large due in most part to Wal Mart. Auburn and MSU are somewhat similar due to engineering and agriculture, but Auburn is about 3 times the size of Starkville, and Lee County is about 4 times the size of Oktibbeha County.

My vote for best is Athens. Worst is probably Tuscaloosa ... that town is terrible based on my trips there. I'd say Starkville, Oxford, Tuscaloosa, and Auburn are all "college towns" because the schools are the predominant things in town. I think only Starkville and Oxford are the only ones that are really pretty isolated though.

I've been to College Station a few times and the town certainly seems small, but the university is huge. It's actually fairly isolated from population centers too.

[Liverpooldawg]

Dude, the difference in Starkville/MSU in 1997/8 to Starkville/MSU in 2018 is almost indescribable. You have to see it to believe it.

It has indeed come a long, long, long way. The campus through the District to Downtown is really good and about to get a LOT better. It's also starting to bring Russell Street into the same kind of thing. Starkville is a legit college town now. If you haven't been in even the last five years you really can't say anything about Starkville and have much idea what you are talking about.

[BrunswickDawg]

Just a few points ... Lexington is the 30th largest city in the nation? You might have it confused with Louisville (they're 29th). It's only 321,000 and they incorportated the entire county; Louisville did too though. Knoxville only has 185000 or so, but the metro is near 1M. Never been to Fayetteville, but I'm not sure 85,000 qualifies as a major city; their metro is pretty large due in most part to Wal Mart. Auburn and MSU are somewhat similar due to engineering and agriculture, but Auburn is about 3 times the size of Starkville, and Lee County is about 4 times the size of Oktibbeha County.

My vote for best is Athens. Worst is probably Tuscaloosa ... that town is terrible based on my trips there. I'd say Starkville, Oxford, Tuscaloosa, and Auburn are all "college towns" because the schools are the predominant things in town. I think only Starkville and Oxford are the only ones that are really pretty isolated though.

I've been to College Station a few times and the town certainly seems small, but the university is huge. It's actually fairly isolated from population centers too.

Went and re read my info - The Lexington rank was "land area" and I mistook that for population because I was skimming quickly. It does have almost a million people in its metro area. I think my point was is that all of those cities aren't "college towns" in the classic sense. None of those "cities" I listed seem like places that live and breath with the college as the main emphasis - at least on my visits to them.

[Political Hack]

I like that breakdown Brunswick and agree some are hard to compare based on whether they're "true college towns" or "towns with a college in it." I do know which ones I enjoy visiting most though. Y'all are making me think I need to go to Auburn for an off weekend. Maybe I'll catch the baseball game next time we're there.

[RocketDawg]

Went and re read my info - The Lexington rank was "land area" and I mistook that for population because I was skimming quickly. It does have almost a million people in its metro area. I think my point was is that all of those cities aren't "college towns" in the classic sense. None of those "cities" I listed seem like places that live and breath with the college as the main emphasis - at least on my visits to them.

Yes, I totally agree about your main point. Lexington is large enough that UK isn't the only game in town though, as you said.

BTW ... the Lexington Metro is just over 500K (6 counties) and the CSA is just over 700K (13 counties). The counties are pretty small in area though ... kinda like those in Georgia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexington–Fayette_metropolitan_area

[RocketDawg]

Went and re read my info - The Lexington rank was "land area" and I mistook that for population because I was skimming quickly. It does have almost a million people in its metro area. I think my point was is that all of those cities aren't "college towns" in the classic sense. None of those "cities" I listed seem like places that live and breath with the college as the main emphasis - at least on my visits to them.

Atlanta is a "college town" since it has Georgia Tech. :)

I think I like college towns best ... the schools get lost in a larger city. Starkville was really tiny when I was there.

[Bothrops]

SEC's college towns:

Athens - But getting too crowded for my taste. Not as good as it was 20 years ago.

Fayetteville

Lexington

Starkville

Auburn

Columbia

Tuscaloosa

Molumbia

College Station

Oxford - would be higher but too much alternative lifestyle for me.

Grainesville

There's your 11 SEC college towns.

[Big4Dawg]

Lol at this thread. Guys - we are last. Our bar and food scene are an absolute joke compared other college towns.

[BrunswickDawg]

Atlanta is a "college town" since it has Georgia Tech. :)

I think I like college towns best ... the schools get lost in a larger city. Starkville was really tiny when I was there.

Tech lol! You can make an argument for Atlanta being a college town because of the HBCUs, but NOT because of the North Avenue Trade School.***

[Bully13]

Dude, the difference in Starkville/MSU in 1997/8 to Starkville/MSU in 2018 is almost indescribable. You have to see it to believe it.

I look forward to seeing it this year and thanks for the info Bruns.

[Bully13]

Lol at this thread. Guys - we are last. Our bar and food scene are an absolute joke compared other college towns.

Are we really THAT bad?

[Bothrops]

Lol at this thread. Guys - we are last. Our bar and food scene are an absolute joke compared other college towns.

Starkville bar scene is down the list sure, but that has nothing to do with being shitty, it's because there's only 25K permanent residents. However, Starkville's food scene is about on par with Oxford, probably better.

[Big4Dawg]

Starkville bar scene is down the list sure, but that has nothing to do with being shitty, it's because there's only 25K permanent residents. However, Starkville's food scene is about on par with Oxford, probably better.

That has a lot to do with being shitty. That's all college kids do. From someone who spent a lot of time in both Starkville and oxford, the food is not that close honestly. Oxford>Starkville.

[Big4Dawg]

Are we really THAT bad?

It's not a bad town. But it's the worst in the SEC. There is zero charm to any of the town besides the one square block of the cotton district.

[Liverpooldawg]

It's not a bad town. But it's the worst in the SEC. There is zero charm to any of the town besides the one square block of the cotton district.

With friends like you......... there is always one. Perhaps you should stay in Oxford.

[Big4Dawg]

With friends like you......... there is always one. Perhaps you should stay in Oxford.

Sorry not everyone agrees with your opinions.

[Bully13]

With friends like you......... there is always one. Perhaps you should stay in Oxford.

Good point Liverpool. Lot's of time we place material things over friendships and the atmosphere those good friendships create. Some people crave a reason to bitch about things because they get a superiority feeling from it and struggle to be happy.

Sorry for the cliche, but I think half full beats half empty. I watched a documentary on the Pearl Harbor aftermath where the new guy came in to take over since the guy at the helm was blamed and fired. While observing his new gig, New guy was like "What? those dumbasses didn't even bomb our dry docs? Why we'll have these ships repaired in no time!" "They didn't even know our only two air craft carriers were out to sea and were not touched? Great!!, we'll be kicking their asses in 6 months! "

That's the way to live life. My Dad taught me well as to why he broke the family tradition and went to State. Uppidy Asshole U was not gonna work and Thank God he did not "choose poorly".

Concentrate on what's Great about State. You'll be glad you did. Don't like the food options? That's what cooking books & grocery stores are for. Invite your friends over to the house and hang out.

[Dawg61]

Would you rather date a Victoria secret model while living in a shack or would you rather date a fat hairy hog while living in a mansion? Buildings & bars don't make the fun. You and your company do.

[Big4Dawg]

What do "the people" around you have to do with college towns? Thought we're judging the towns here?

[Dawg61]

What do "the people" around you have to do with college towns? Thought we're judging the towns here?

They have everything to do with it. You wanna hang out with a bunch of Islamic terrorists in Abu Dahbi or Dak Prescott and his buddies in Tijuana? I'm picking Dak every time. Oxford might have prettier buildings than Starkville but it has 20,000 douchebags in all those buildings. That makes it a far worse town than Starkville.

[Charlee08]

I?ve seen a ton of threads like these over the years and most Kentucky fans always love the trips to Athens, Oxford, and Baton Rouge. UK fans enjoy Nashville the most because it?s only a few hours drive for most, but it?s not a college town.

Starkville, Knoxville, and the two Columbia?s seem to always draw the worst reviews.

Lexington is a college town. Without UK and Transylvania University the city would be a giant horse farm.

[Bothrops]

That has a lot to do with being shitty. That's all college kids do. From someone who spent a lot of time in both Starkville and oxford, the food is not that close honestly. Oxford>Starkville.

Nope.

[Pit Bull]

Only advantage for Ole Miss is that they are about 30 to 45 minutes from a 1.4 million population area, and an hour from its downtown. They can be a separate small college town but have the ability to entertain their residents to a large city environment. As long as we (MSU) can keep the GTR area growing with industry, it will only help with the surrounding cities. Manufacturing jobs are the key to supporting MSU athletic events. More disposable income an individual has, the more he/she will come to watch our games in all sports. We have lots of room to grow.....wish we could land a large manufacturer of about 1,000 to 2,000 good paying jobs in Starkville itself.

….which leads me to this question? Does Starkville's mayor try to sell Starkvegas to industry? If not, that should be one of his primary functions. In fact, if I were a resident of Starkville, I would support a referendum to change the name to "Starkvegas". Creates more buzz nationally and people remember the name so much easier. I think it would help our image and attract more quality industry and associated amenities.

[TimberBeast]

Athens? Bar and music good, there are bums EVERYWHERE. Would you want your kids around that?

[Pit Bull]

Athens? Bar and music good, there are bums EVERYWHERE. Would you want your kids around that?

Haven't been to Athens since John Bond & Company lost to UGA highlighted by a simple TD pass that Terry Hoague jumped up and intercepted in the endzone preventing a MSU score that would have really tightened the game. Probably 20-30 years ago. At that time, I thought Athens was one of the best tailgating environments I had ever seen. I don't do bar scenes, so I can't speak to the bums laying around. Time changes everything and a lot of great American cities are being run into the ground by their governments. Sad but true. I do plan to make a return road trip to Knoxville next year due to family living there. Haven't been there in a long time too.....should be interesting to see how that town has changed.

[LC Dawg]

It's not a bad town. But it's the worst in the SEC. There is zero charm to any of the town besides the one square block of the cotton district.

That's bullshit. Starkville definitely lacks in certain areas and they are improving but to make a statement like that you are just trolling or some Starkville city official has pissed you off.
Is Baton Rouge charming? Tuscaloosa? That charming town of Oxford you spoke of seems to have a problem with hookers and drunken brawls.

[Msudogsrule]

I am from Starkville and live in Lexington. I will be totally honest here... I wouldn't give up living in Lexington to move back to Starkville. Much better bar and food scene here (even though we have too many chains), and I find the area to be so much prettier.

Not to mention, so much more opportunity here... a chance to actually move up. You can't do that in Starkville without working at the University. I come back at least once a year to Starkville, and while I enjoy seeing friends and family, going through campus and getting some of my local favorite foods... I can't wait to come back to Lexington each time.

As for if Lexington is a college town? Yeah, it is... but it is right on the cusp of outgrowing that. The population boom in just the 13 years I have been here is insane.

[Political Hack]

That's bullshit. Starkville definitely lacks in certain areas and they are improving but to make a statement like that you are just trolling or some Starkville city official has pissed you off.
Is Baton Rouge charming? Tuscaloosa? That charming town of Oxford you spoke of seems to have a problem with hookers and drunken brawls.

Agree. I like Oxford on non-game weekends when the square isn't packed. On game weekends and big night life weekends, I'd prefer to avoid it.

I enjoy Starkville more than others apparently. The food is as good or better than many college towns and the bar scene isn't obnoxious.

[StarkVegasSteve]

I was lucky enough while in college to visit most SEC towns and if you're ranking it strictly by college towns it's

1. Athens- may have been one of the most fun trips I've made outside of the 2.5 hours we took an ass whipping
2. Auburn- On some days I believe this is number 1 and had it far and away number 1 before I visited Athens. This is what Starkville could be if the city would get out of it's own way and build around the university. Sky Bar is the best bar in an SEC town.
3. Columbia- Really cool town with a nice downtown. Still think it's in the second tier behind Athens and Auburn.
4. Fayetteville- Awesome town, never felt like it was too big and all the bars are centered into one area, but it's about a mile stretch so none of the bars get too crowded. It's a much cleaner version of Tuscaloosa.
5. Lexington- A lot of stuff to do around Lexington such as bourbon tours and the race tracks that probably inflate it's rating in my mind. Cool town though.
6. CoMo- Underrated town, but you gotta know where to go for it to be fun, similar to Starkville in that aspect. Would probably be higher in my mind if not for the flood that occurred while we were there.
7. Oxford- As much as some may hate it, it's still a solid college town with a lot of stuff to do.
8. Starkville- I think we've risen a lot in the past few years. I probably would've said we were between 11-14 a few years ago, but we're on the come up for sure.
9. Baton Rouge- Really gone downhill in the last couple of years. Really enjoyed it in 12 and 14 but was absolutely miserable in 16. Just a lot of problems to clean up in the Baton Rouge area right now.
10. Tuscaloosa- The fans make this a worse place in my mind than the actual town. The town itself is really cool, but when you add their fans into the equation it makes it terrible.
11. College Station- A lot of potential there, they just don't seem to realize it. This could be an Athens or Columbia if the city would put some effort into growth.
12. Nashville- This would far and away be number 1 if we were just ranking cities, but Vandy doesn't really seem to have any connection to the city, it's too touristy to develop a good fan base.
13. Knoxville- Tailgating is pretty good, but that's about it. They're trying to be a college town with 1 million+ living in the area.
14. Gainesville- Nothing good about this town. It's awful.

[Liverpooldawg]

What do "the people" around you have to do with college towns? Thought we're judging the towns here?

The people ARE the town. The buildings are just where they live.

[Liverpooldawg]

Sorry not everyone agrees with your opinions.

Not everyone agrees with yours either.

[Dawg61]

I am from Starkville and live in Lexington. I will be totally honest here... I wouldn't give up living in Lexington to move back to Starkville. Much better bar and food scene here (even though we have too many chains), and I find the area to be so much prettier.

Not to mention, so much more opportunity here... a chance to actually move up. You can't do that in Starkville without working at the University. I come back at least once a year to Starkville, and while I enjoy seeing friends and family, going through campus and getting some of my local favorite foods... I can't wait to come back to Lexington each time.

As for if Lexington is a college town? Yeah, it is... but it is right on the cusp of outgrowing that. The population boom in just the 13 years I have been here is insane.

Not supposed to graduate and then just live in Starkville for the rest of our lives. That kinda ruins the whole small college town thing for the next guy if every graduate just hangs out forever. At some point ya gotta kinda not be in college anymore.

[Liverpooldawg]

Starkville isn't big. It isn't flashy. It's not going to offer everything the bigger cities and towns offer. What it has done over the last decade is become a legit college town. It's going to improve even more in the next 5 years. It used to be your average Mississippi town with a university siting next to it. It's not that anymore. If all you ever see when yo go there is the highways and the campus then your opinion on the town isn't legitimate due to lack of information. Nor is it legitimate if you haven't been in the last five years. It will never be what Lexington and some of the others are because thank goodness it isn't big enough. I hope it never gets that big because that's one of the main things I like about it. I also hope it never becomes what Oxford is. If I want to go to Oxford I could go there easily enough, with or without a game. I only go when I have to. I don't care for it. I like Starkville. It's a cool town now, and I wouldn't have said that 10 years ago. It's getting nicer on the surface all the time, and it's got a laid back vibe that suits me. To each his own. I'm not that widely traveled around the SEC, but from every thing I've seen and heard Auburn is the town Starkville needs to be most like. Now what would be really neat would be for Starkville to try to emulate what many smaller European towns do. If you could somehow
Make the main Cotton District/Downtown road a pedestrian only shopping and dining district. Speyer, Germany would be something to look at. One end of theirs is focused on the cathedral, ours would be on the university. I doubt it's feasible but it would be pretty cool.

[Commercecomet24]

Starkville isn't big. It isn't flashy. It's not going to offer everything the bigger cities and towns offer. What it has done over the last decade is become a legit college town. It's going to improve even more in the next 5 years. It used to be your average Mississippi town with a university siting next to it. It's not that anymore. If all you ever see when yo go there is the highways and the campus then your opinion on the town isn't legitimate due to lack of information. Nor is it legitimate if you haven't been in the last five years. It will never be what Lexington and some of the others are because thank goodness it isn't big enough. I hope it never gets that big because that's one of the main things I like about it. I also hope it never becomes what Oxford is. If I want to go to Oxford I could go there easily enough, with or without a game. I only go when I have to. I don't care for it. I like Starkville. It's a cool town now, and I wouldn't have said that 10 years ago. It's getting nicer on the surface all the time, and it's got a laid back vibe that suits me. To each his own. I'm not that widely traveled around the SEC, but from every thing I've seen and heard Auburn is the town Starkville needs to be most like. Now what would be really neat would be for Starkville to try to emulate what many smaller European towns do. If you could somehow
Make the main Cotton District/Downtown road a pedestrian only shopping and dining district. Speyer, Germany would be something to look at. One end of theirs is focused on the cathedral, ours would be on the university. I doubt it's feasible but it would be pretty cool.

Agreed, Great Post! My travels for work take me to just about every SEC city(with the exception of the 2 Columbias and College Station). I love the smaller towns the best, Starkville, Auburn, etc., just my preference. Athens is cool. I love the Knoxville area but that's mostly because I love the beauty of East Tennessee, Lexington is beautiful country as well. Fayetteville is ok. Nashville is ok but to congested. Tuscaloosa and Gainesville don't do anything for me, look and feel just like most larger cities in the South. Baton Rouge has gone down hill and has major issues. Sorry but I just don't find any redeeming qualities about oxford, it reminds me of Canton with a University attached(no offense to Canton at all).

[LC Dawg]

Starkville isn't big. It isn't flashy. It's not going to offer everything the bigger cities and towns offer. What it has done over the last decade is become a legit college town. It's going to improve even more in the next 5 years. It used to be your average Mississippi town with a university siting next to it. It's not that anymore. If all you ever see when yo go there is the highways and the campus then your opinion on the town isn't legitimate due to lack of information. Nor is it legitimate if you haven't been in the last five years. It will never be what Lexington and some of the others are because thank goodness it isn't big enough. I hope it never gets that big because that's one of the main things I like about it. I also hope it never becomes what Oxford is. If I want to go to Oxford I could go there easily enough, with or without a game. I only go when I have to. I don't care for it. I like Starkville. It's a cool town now, and I wouldn't have said that 10 years ago. It's getting nicer on the surface all the time, and it's got a laid back vibe that suits me. To each his own. I'm not that widely traveled around the SEC, but from every thing I've seen and heard Auburn is the town Starkville needs to be most like. Now what would be really neat would be for Starkville to try to emulate what many smaller European towns do. If you could somehow
Make the main Cotton District/Downtown road a pedestrian only shopping and dining district. Speyer, Germany would be something to look at. One end of theirs is focused on the cathedral, ours would be on the university. I doubt it's feasible but it would be pretty cool.

Well said.
Starkville has really progressed recently. One thing I think they need are jobs to keep State graduates in town. There are obviously a lot of college kids in town and also a lot of retired people and people nearing retirement. They are lacking in the 25-35 year olds. My daughter stayed in Starkville after graduation and the only thing she complains about is the lack of things to do for her age group. She and her friends don't want to go to the college district because it is mostly college kids and more of a party atmosphere. The Guest Room caters to young professionals but not much else. The reason is that there are not a lot of young professionals in town. State graduates a lot of engineers every year but there are not many places for them to work in Starkville.
I do like the job the mayor is doing. I think she has a great vision for Starkville. The downtown area has so much potential but needs some more restaurants. I really wish someone would open up a cool restaurant/bar in the old Mugshots building.
My wife and I spend a lot of time in Starkville because of my daughter and we love it. If someone wants to truly appreciate what Starkville has become they need to come visit on a weekend without a football game.

[dawgs]

Athens is #1 maybe in the country.

Knoxville seems to be coming along, wasn't a big fan of it 15+ years ago the last time I was there, but the big ears music fest alone makes it cooler than any non-Athens/non-Nashville sec town/city imo. And really Nashville is getting way too country-bro-tourist trap for me. Last time I was there about 2 years ago for a friend's wedding and it kinda annoyed me really. Some cool spots but anywhere near downtown or the vandy area was a soulless wasteland.

[Political Hack]

I go to athens quite a bit (more than Starkville), and I understand the draw, but I don't see it as being a clear favorite for everyone. They have a great food, bar, and music scene right next to campus but it's really crowded, there's waits everywhere, and the panhandling and scavengers have made it lose its small town feel. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy going but I've had more fun on game days elsewhere too.

[BrunswickDawg]

I go to athens quite a bit (more than Starkville), and I understand the draw, but I don't see it as being a clear favorite for everyone. They have a great food, bar, and music scene right next to campus but it's really crowded, there's waits everywhere, and the panhandling and scavengers have made it lose its small town feel. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy going but I've had more fun on game days elsewhere too.

Game weekends are insane everywhere, but the rest of the year Athens is great. I hate Athens on football weekends. The traffic is ridiculous, tailgating is incredibly spread out, disjointed, and it's impossible to go find friends because of it (and it's damn hilly). And you will have shit stolen from your tailgate - so you have to lock everything down before going into the game. The Junction and the tailgate situation in Starkville is head and shoulders above Athens. And I thought that back in the pre-junction days when Jerry Clower would hold court in the RV's parked in the median in what is now the Junction. The Junction just turned what we had up to 11.

[HoopsDawg]

I was lucky enough while in college to visit most SEC towns and if you're ranking it strictly by college towns it's

1. Athens- may have been one of the most fun trips I've made outside of the 2.5 hours we took an ass whipping
2. Auburn- On some days I believe this is number 1 and had it far and away number 1 before I visited Athens. This is what Starkville could be if the city would get out of it's own way and build around the university. Sky Bar is the best bar in an SEC town.
3. Columbia- Really cool town with a nice downtown. Still think it's in the second tier behind Athens and Auburn.
4. Fayetteville- Awesome town, never felt like it was too big and all the bars are centered into one area, but it's about a mile stretch so none of the bars get too crowded. It's a much cleaner version of Tuscaloosa.
5. Lexington- A lot of stuff to do around Lexington such as bourbon tours and the race tracks that probably inflate it's rating in my mind. Cool town though.
6. CoMo- Underrated town, but you gotta know where to go for it to be fun, similar to Starkville in that aspect. Would probably be higher in my mind if not for the flood that occurred while we were there.
7. Oxford- As much as some may hate it, it's still a solid college town with a lot of stuff to do.
8. Starkville- I think we've risen a lot in the past few years. I probably would've said we were between 11-14 a few years ago, but we're on the come up for sure.
9. Baton Rouge- Really gone downhill in the last couple of years. Really enjoyed it in 12 and 14 but was absolutely miserable in 16. Just a lot of problems to clean up in the Baton Rouge area right now.
10. Tuscaloosa- The fans make this a worse place in my mind than the actual town. The town itself is really cool, but when you add their fans into the equation it makes it terrible.
11. College Station- A lot of potential there, they just don't seem to realize it. This could be an Athens or Columbia if the city would put some effort into growth.
12. Nashville- This would far and away be number 1 if we were just ranking cities, but Vandy doesn't really seem to have any connection to the city, it's too touristy to develop a good fan base.
13. Knoxville- Tailgating is pretty good, but that's about it. They're trying to be a college town with 1 million+ living in the area.
14. Gainesville- Nothing good about this town. It's awful.

This is a really good list, but I think you and a few others in this thread over-value Columbia, MO. To me it has to be town + Campus and their campus kind of sucks and the town isn't that great either. I would also have Knoxville in the Top 8 somewhere.

[HoopsDawg]

I was lucky enough while in college to visit most SEC towns and if you're ranking it strictly by college towns it's

1. Athens- may have been one of the most fun trips I've made outside of the 2.5 hours we took an ass whipping
2. Auburn- On some days I believe this is number 1 and had it far and away number 1 before I visited Athens. This is what Starkville could be if the city would get out of it's own way and build around the university. Sky Bar is the best bar in an SEC town.
3. Columbia- Really cool town with a nice downtown. Still think it's in the second tier behind Athens and Auburn.
4. Fayetteville- Awesome town, never felt like it was too big and all the bars are centered into one area, but it's about a mile stretch so none of the bars get too crowded. It's a much cleaner version of Tuscaloosa.
5. Lexington- A lot of stuff to do around Lexington such as bourbon tours and the race tracks that probably inflate it's rating in my mind. Cool town though.
6. CoMo- Underrated town, but you gotta know where to go for it to be fun, similar to Starkville in that aspect. Would probably be higher in my mind if not for the flood that occurred while we were there.
7. Oxford- As much as some may hate it, it's still a solid college town with a lot of stuff to do.
8. Starkville- I think we've risen a lot in the past few years. I probably would've said we were between 11-14 a few years ago, but we're on the come up for sure.
9. Baton Rouge- Really gone downhill in the last couple of years. Really enjoyed it in 12 and 14 but was absolutely miserable in 16. Just a lot of problems to clean up in the Baton Rouge area right now.
10. Tuscaloosa- The fans make this a worse place in my mind than the actual town. The town itself is really cool, but when you add their fans into the equation it makes it terrible.
11. College Station- A lot of potential there, they just don't seem to realize it. This could be an Athens or Columbia if the city would put some effort into growth.
12. Nashville- This would far and away be number 1 if we were just ranking cities, but Vandy doesn't really seem to have any connection to the city, it's too touristy to develop a good fan base.
13. Knoxville- Tailgating is pretty good, but that's about it. They're trying to be a college town with 1 million+ living in the area.
14. Gainesville- Nothing good about this town. It's awful.

1. Athens
2. Auburn
3. Columbia, SC
4. Lexington
5. Knoxville
6. Fayetteville
7. Starkville
8. Oxford
9. Baton Rouge
10. Tuscaloosa
11. Columbia, MO
12. Nashville- college gameday experience is the worst in the conference. great city, but too crowded now.
13. College Station- feels like a cult
14. Gainesville- jort capital of the world. shithole

[Political Hack]

Game weekends are insane everywhere, but the rest of the year Athens is great. I hate Athens on football weekends. The traffic is ridiculous, tailgating is incredibly spread out, disjointed, and it's impossible to go find friends because of it (and it's damn hilly). And you will have shit stolen from your tailgate - so you have to lock everything down before going into the game. The Junction and the tailgate situation in Starkville is head and shoulders above Athens. And I thought that back in the pre-junction days when Jerry Clower would hold court in the RV's parked in the median in what is now the Junction. The Junction just turned what we had up to 11.

Agree. State tailgate >>>>>> UGA tailgate

[RocketDawg]

Game weekends are insane everywhere, but the rest of the year Athens is great. I hate Athens on football weekends. The traffic is ridiculous, tailgating is incredibly spread out, disjointed, and it's impossible to go find friends because of it (and it's damn hilly). And you will have shit stolen from your tailgate - so you have to lock everything down before going into the game. The Junction and the tailgate situation in Starkville is head and shoulders above Athens. And I thought that back in the pre-junction days when Jerry Clower would hold court in the RV's parked in the median in what is now the Junction. The Junction just turned what we had up to 11.

Yes, I agree. I've been there twice ... once for a game, and once for my son's graduation. It really is a nice town, and has a much bigger downtown than I expected. Gameday parking is terrible though ... we had to park in a garage a mile or so away, and never could get a shuttle bus. And as you said, it's hilly.

[RocketDawg]

Tech lol! You can make an argument for Atlanta being a college town because of the HBCUs, but NOT because of the North Avenue Trade School.***

True. :)

[RocketDawg]

Auburn - Went for a baseball series after school was out and really enjoyed hanging out in the downtown area. Not being crowded probably helped me enjoy it more.
College Station - Nicest host fans anywhere. Didn't get to spend a lot of time in town but game day on and around campus was great.
Baton Rouge - When I was in school we had many fun trips to Baton Rouge. I like LSU fans. They know how to have fun.
Nashville - Nashville is a great city but its not a college town.
Knoxville - Spent time there 10 years ago on work. It seemed kind of dirty and campus did not impress me.
Tuscaloosa - Larger than Starkville but about the same in regards to things to do. Jam packed with dickheads.
Oxford - Can't even try to enjoy the town because I know I hate the people.


I plan to go to Fayetteville next year and hope to go to Lexington soon. I hate I missed the opportunity to go to Athens last year but I couldn't make it work.

That's to be expected. **

[RocketDawg]

Dude, the difference in Starkville/MSU in 1997/8 to Starkville/MSU in 2018 is almost indescribable. You have to see it to believe it.

Downtown isn't much different than when I was there about a million years ago ... same buildings, different businesses. But the area ... totally different.

[Dawg2003]

Being completely objective, I'd say Knoxville, Gainesville, and Auburn are the best ones I've been to. Gainesville and Knoxville are nice sized but still retain the college town feel. Baton Rogue and Tuscaloosa would be at the bottom. Starkville right above Tuscaloosa and Baton Rogue. Nashville is a nice city but not a colleg town to me. Oxford is okay but not as good as advertised IMO. After the square, there's not much to recommend. I haven't been to the other 4 towns. Now, if I'm not being objective, I would say Starkville of course, but they really need to relocate those 2 trailer parks outside of town. Also, HWY 12 is an eyesore.