1) Nebraska- everything about the city of Lincoln and the campus there screams college football heaven. We had plenty of Husker fans socialize with us in the tailgate, and even after the Gophers were victorious, we had fans coming up to us thanking us for making the trip. Not one bad word to say about the Huskers in two trips to Lincoln.
2) USC- it was exactly how I wished the tailgate atmosphere would be here on campus. Obviously in an urban location, fans could wheel a cooler up to any patch of grass and tailgate. It was a beautiful setting walking through campus, although we didn't dare getting to far from the action. The stadium itself seemed to be rundown, and the atmosphere wasn't as good as most B1G stadiums I've been to.
3) Wisconsin- We tailgate a couple blocks from the stadium each trip we make, so I may be a bit biased over someone that doesn't know where to go. The stadium is pretty meh, as it's essentially a concrete mess. This past year they really seemed to blast the music and didn't let their band participate much at all. The fans were much better this past year, and they mentioned that they understand Kill has us on the right track and their dominance will be ending (hopefully starting this year!)
4) Iowa- Overall a pretty nice trip, but as many people mentioned, it's about as crammed as I've ever been while watching a game. Their fans seemed to be pretty into it, as we couldn't sit the entire game last time we were there.
5) TCU- Stadium itself was nothing to write home about, but the fans we talked to were very knowledgeable, and we had a blast at the tailgate. Would love to get back there again in a game that's close to see how rowdy that place can really get, but ya can't blame their fans for checking out in the 2nd half as they were walking away with the victory.
6) Purdue- Looks like I had a better time than most in Purdue, but that's likely due to the fact that we were in college and stayed with people we knew. We had a blast the whole weekend, and their pregame setup was crazy, with all the kids being dressed up in Halloween costumes as early as 5am (even though it wasn't Halloween- it's apparently something they do every week) The stadium atmosphere was pretty bland, as the fans were pretty down on the team.
7) Arizona State- Beautiful setting next to a mountain, but the atmosphere was pretty stale. Not much for tailgating around the stadium, and the crowd support was pretty bleak once the game started.
8) UNLV- Absolutely nothing nice to say about UNLV. There was about 14 Rebel fans there, and the ones we encountered had no idea what they were talking about. Stadium is equivalent to a D2 stadium around here, and the tailgate was a mess. We were told we couldn't walk in with beer. Could only bring in drinks if you brought it in with a car (which we didn't have as we cabbed out there). Stadium is also in the middle of nowhere.
Bowl Games Venues
1) Orlando- Had a great time in Orlando this past year. Tailgated 2 blocks from the stadium and had plenty of room to play beanbags, etc before the game. Just had redone the bottom levels of the stadium, and sight lines were pretty good as we moved throughout the concourse at halftime and before the game.
2) Nashville- Haven't been since the win over 'Bama, so my views might be a bit outdated. Fun city, although I wasn't of drinking age at the time, but would love to get back now that I am! Enjoyed talking football with many of the locals, and the Bama fans were great to talk to after the game. Easy to see why they have such a great following, as they had about 65,000 show up to a game in a season when they were .500
3) Houston- Had a decent time, and the stadium itself is pretty nice. Nothing really happening around the stadium makes for a dull tailgate if you aren't in the right spot. If the place was packed, I'd likely have a much different view.
Overall, many of the stadiums are generally close overall, as some stadiums focus on different things. Really though, Lincoln is an easy #1 for me, and UNLV is an easy dead last.