College Football Recruiting: The Best Game-Day Atmospheres To Impress Recruits

With recruiting, we always like to read and see how a recruit enjoyed himself on an official visit, which usually consists of attending the school's home game that weekend.

With college football being such a tradition-laden game, fans and supporters are keys to the overall game-day atmosphere at their favorite school's home stadium. They are important not only inside the stadium, but outside, for pregame tailgating and other game-day traditions that add to a potentially electric and alluring atmosphere for fall Saturdays.

While I'm positive every school has a great atmosphere, I decided to whittle the list down to the elite game-day atmospheres in college football that can really impress and entice recruits. These atmospheres all have a buzz not only regionally, but nationally as well.

Come check it out.

7. Auburn at Jordan-Hare Stadium

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GLENDALE, AZ - JANUARY 10: Challenger, a Bald Eagle circles the stadium during the national anthem for the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game between the Oregon Ducks and Auburn Tigers at University of Phoenix Stadium on January 10, 2011 in Glendale

You want to know why the national media made such a big deal about USC coming in and beating Auburn at Jordan-Hare in 2002? They did it because Auburn's home crowd is rowdy, ridiculously loud and the atmosphere is insane.

Fans line up around Downtown Auburn for the "Tiger Walk." As the Auburn players walk over to Jordan-Hare, Toomer's Corner is packed full of supporters, the town is buzzing and the stadium is rocking. They actually do fly an eagle around the stadium before the game and at kickoff, and the "War Eagle" chant is booming when the ball's booted in the air to start the game.

This really does serve the players well and gets the juices flowing, and the Tigers will head into 2011 as the defending national champions.

6. Oregon at Autzen Stadium

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EUGENE, OR - NOVEMBER 26: Oregon Ducks fans cheer as mascot 'Puddles' prepares to do some push ups in the fourth quarter of the game against the Arizona Wildcats at Autzen Stadium on November 26, 2010 in Eugene, Oregon. Puddles does push ups for every poi

Autzen Stadium is regarded as one of—if not the—loudest college football stadiums in the country, bar none.

The place is loud. Really loud.

Oregon's fans flock (pun kind of intended) to support the Duck football players every Saturday. Tailgating begins as early as Wednesday night and carries all the way through the game.

Another aspect of the game days in Eugene is the facilities around the campus. Oregon has perhaps the top sports facilities in the country, which makes the awe only increase. It's a beautiful scene with loud fans, trailers, motor homes, a sea of green and yellow and beautiful land and scenery all around you.

When the team comes out, displaying which uniform they're playing in on that day, the whole stadium goes nuts.

It also doesn't hurt that their mascot is a duck that rides around on a motorcycle.

5. Tennessee at Neyland Stadium

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KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 18: Orange-clad Tennessee Volunteers fans sing along with 'Rocky Top' during a game against the Florida Gators at Neyland Stadium on September 18, 2010 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Florida won 31-17. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty

Rocky Top is crazy in the fall. Neyland Stadium holds over 102,000 Vol fans that come out in a sea of orange. The fans are supremely passionate about the Vols and the atmosphere is special.

It starts with the "Vol Walk," started by Johnny Majors, as the Vol players walk out to Peyton Manning Pass and Fulmer Way, greeting fans as they make their way to the stadium.

Aside from the classic checkered end zones, the biggest treat for me is watching the "Pride of the Southland" opening up the T and the Volunteers running out onto the field, with the packed Neyland Stadium crowd just going ballistic to cheer its players on.

This is a crazy atmosphere that recruits seem to always come away impressed with.

4. Florida at the Swamp

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GAINESVILLE, FL - NOVEMBER 16: Fans of the Florida Gators cheer play against the Ohio State Buckeyes November 16, 2010 at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

The Gators did a very smart thing to market themselves in nicknaming their home field "The Swamp," as the official name is Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

The Gator faithful have taken pride in The Swamp, as it has always been subject to improvements, renovations and expansions over the years.

It holds around 90,000 and it is something to head to the stadium on a fall Saturday and see a sea of blue-and-orange-clad fans doing the "Gator chomp" all in unison. The Gator players really feed off the energy the crowd gives them on game days.

The stadium's fans are right on top of the field, as the walls to enclose the field are not far from the grass. The fans are loud and rabid, and it's usually humid on the field, which annoys the opposing team and disrupts its comfort level.

The pregame tailgating is ridiculous, as you can get an array of foods all around the stadium.

3. Notre Dame at Notre Dame Stadium

You want to talk about awe and mystique? Notre Dame Stadium is it.

You walk in and feel an eerie sensation, as you know some of college football's biggest names have either played or coached there over a great stretch of time.

The fans are always confident, partly because they're arrogant about the Notre Dame name. The Irish fans are heavily into the game and they are staunch supporters in the pregame phase. Recruits love the atmosphere as they see the "Touchdown Jesus" mural up close and personally. It is a prime site to see.

This atmosphere is something that a pure college football fan—even one that despises Notre Dame like some do—has to experience at least once.

2. LSU at Death Valley

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BATON ROUGE, LA - NOVEMBER 20: A general view of Tiger Stadium during the game betweem the Louisiana State University Tigers and the Ole Miss Rebels on November 20, 2010 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The Tigers seem to draw rave reviews from recruits for their game-day atmosphere at Tiger Stadium. Even Bear Bryant hated playing there, calling it the very worst place to play for an opposing team in the country.

The fans are loud, really annoying to the opposing team and they root for the Tigers extremely hard.

But, the atmosphere outside the stadium is just as electric as it is inside.

The LSU crowd does the tailgating phase of game day oh so right. The natives of Baton Rouge cook up some crazy portions of some of the best-tasting food you'll ever eat.

The environment is just special, and they really light it up on Saturday-night games. It's been called almost unfair by opposing teams and fans alike.

With the pregame, the tailgating, the stadium design, intensity, crowd volume, attendance and passion for the team, the LSU Tiger game-day atmosphere is flat-out special.

1. Virginia Tech at Lane Stadium (Especially on Thursday Nights)

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BLACKSBURG, VA - NOVEMBER 04: Cheerleaders from the Virginia Tech Hokies lead the players onto the field prior to the Hokies game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Lane Stadium on November 4, 2010 in Blacksburg, Virginia. (Photo by Geoff Burke/G

This may be surprising, but if you haven't heard about how the Hokies do it on Thursday nights, then you need to ask somebody. VaTech relishes Thursday night ESPN games and the fans relish these games in a tradition unto themselves.

The Hokie crowd is very, very loud, and you get a sense they are all waiting for something. The band is playing on the field, the tailgating is nice, but you are still asking yourself "What are they waiting for?"

Then the fans pack the stadium and after the national anthem, they get what they've been waiting for. Metallica's "Enter Sandman" starts and you look around to see almost 68,000 doing the "Blacksburg Bounce" and going crazy.

You look down at the tunnel and Frank Beamer appears, trying his best to hold the team back from storming onto the field because the crowd is firing them up so much.

Once "Enter Sandman" really revs up, Beamer leads the Hokies out on the field and the crowd erupts even louder. Another key aspect if you're a recruit on a visit is walking down the long, dark and scary old tunnel under Lane Stadium that really makes you get your mind right to play.