Every year during the preseason, we rank things -- best this, best that. It's highly subjective. And fans seem to like it. We know that because it makes so many of you apoplectic at our bias and stupidity.
Athlon Sports has ranked the Pac-12 stadiums. Here's its completely defensible list.
Auzten Stadium, Oregon
Husky Stadium, Washington
Rose Bowl, UCLA
LA Coliseum, USC
Folsom Field, Colorado
Memorial Stadium, California
Sun Devil Stadium, Arizona State
Reser Stadium, Oregon State
Stanford Stadium, Stanford
Arizona Stadium, Arizona
Rice-Eccles Stadium, Utah
Martin Stadium, Washington State
The thing about ranking stadiums is there's a lot that goes into it.
Are you voting on the venue's quality? Its surroundings? The team inside it? The size? Loudness?
Are stadiums that house struggling teams going to get automatically downgraded? Will teams with small stadiums always lose out? And does the surrounding scene -- food, drink, entertainment -- matter?
If you are voting on the stadium itself -- the venue -- the Rose Bowl is the best Pac-12 stadium. Why? It's the Rose Bowl, silly.
I've not yet seen a game in the renovated Husky Stadium -- no one has! -- but if it turns out the way I keep hearing it will, it will be just behind the Rose Bowl.
As for as game-day atmosphere, Oregon is No. 1. Autzen is a great venue with very, very committed fans.
Very, very committed fans.
But if Washington gets back to its 1980s-90s form, Husky Stadium could give Autzen a run for its money.
Oh, Duck fans ... you know it's true.
As could the Coliseum. Talk about an intimidating place to play. The Trojans were practically unbeatable there from 2002-08. Don't forget the USC band playing its ditties. Over and over. And over.
And what happens if California and Colorado play their way back into the Top 25? Great venues, great locations and fans that can get after it.
Further, I'm not so sure Rice-Eccles should be so low. The only negative for Utah is size. Otherwise, it's a cool stadium with seriously passionate fans. And, if I'm there, I go here after the game and gain 10 pounds.
Like I wrote, it's highly subjective. When the Rose Bowl is half full, it's a pretty mediocre scene. When Martin Stadium was rocking during the Cougars' run from 2001-03, it was a pretty darn cool place, too.
And Boulder is a really, really great place to visit.