Going into the 2025-26 college football season, RotoWire analysts have developed a methodology for ranking all B1G stadiums based on hostility for visiting teams. Metrics utilized include:
- Capacity (30 max points) – based on current capacity of each stadium
- Noise (30 max points) – based on reported noise levels (dB)
- Home Advantage (40 max points) – based on win % at home since 2020
The results can be seen below.
Big Ten Stadium Hostility Index
| 1 | Stadium (Team) | Capacity (30 max) | Noise (30 max) | Home Advantage (40 max) | Final Score (100 max) |
| 2 | Ohio Stadium (Ohio State) | 29 | 28 | 37 | 94 |
| 3 | Michigan Stadium (Michigan) | 30 | 29 | 34 | 93 |
| 4 | Beaver Stadium (Penn State) | 30 | 30 | 32 | 92 |
| 5 | Autzen Stadium (Oregon) | 15 | 28 | 39 | 82 |
| 6 | Husky Stadium (Washington) | 20 | 26 | 34 | 80 |
| 7 | Kinnick Stadium (Iowa) | 19 | 24 | 33 | 76 |
| 8 | Camp Randall Stadium (Wisconsin) | 22 | 26 | 25 | 73 |
| 9 | Spartan Stadium (Michigan State) | 21 | 24 | 26 | 71 |
| 10 | Rose Bowl (UCLA) | 25 | 20 | 25 | 70 |
| 11 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (USC) | 22 | 20 | 28 | 70 |
| 12 | Memorial Stadium (Nebraska) | 24 | 24 | 19 | 67 |
| 13 | Memorial Stadium (Indiana) | 15 | 20 | 27 | 62 |
| 14 | TCF Bank Stadium (Minnesota) | 14 | 21 | 25 | 60 |
| 15 | Memorial Stadium (Illinois) | 17 | 21 | 21 | 59 |
| 16 | Maryland Stadium (Maryland) | 14 | 20 | 23 | 57 |
| 17 | Ross-Ade Stadium (Purdue) | 16 | 21 | 16 | 53 |
| 18 | SHI Stadium (Rutgers) | 15 | 20 | 16 | 51 |
| 19 | Ryan Field (Northwestern) | 13 | 19 | 19 | 51 |
Analyzing the Big Ten Hostility Index: Factors and Insights
Nebraska's Memorial Stadium has earned a reputation as being one of the more hospitable sites in the Big Ten for visitors wearing the opposing team's colors, but the kindness of Cornhuskers fans hasn't diluted their passion. It's impressive for a team with only one Bowl appearance in the last nine years to score 24 out of 30 on the noise scale. If the pairing of coach Matt Rhule and QB Dylan Raiola can make a Year 2 leap, Memorial Stadium could skyrocket up the Hostility Index by this time next year.
The Hoosiers may have overachieved to the tune of a Cinderella run in head coach Curt Cignetti's inaugural season, improving to an 11-2 record after going 3-9 the year prior, and earning the school's first every College Football playoff qualification. Even if Indiana regresses to a median, the team has enough momentum to keep Memorial Stadium raucous for the foreseeable future. That means the Hoosiers could keep up a genuine homefield advantage for the first time in recent memory – in the past, in spite of it being a smaller facility, Memorial Stadium piling on the noise was usually a sign of opposing fans making the trip.
The Trojans have had no issues with attendance in the Lincoln Riley era, despite the team's record declining from 11-3 to 8-5, the 7-6 in 2024. We've seen the Memorial Coliseum's capacity can work as a disadvantage when the Trojans aren't hot, with ample space between seats and the field compounding things. One necessity for the Trojans to stay competitive in 2025 will be finding a replacement for Woody Marks, who piled up 1,454 total yards and nine scores out of the backfield last year.
Autzen Stadium has earned a positive reputation, but with an intimate 54,000 capacity and fanbase better known for loyalty and enthusiasm (and perhaps smugness) than outright meanness, ranking inside the top-five on the Hostility Index is somewhat surprising. Separating homefield advantage from program quality isn't an exact science, but Oregon's Capacity:Noise ratio of 15:28 is the largest disparity among our metrics.
Ranking last on the Hostility Index is an appropriate sendoff to Ryan Field, which is currently in the process of being demolished. The Wildcats will have to play their first five home games in a temporary facility, which is at least on the shore of Lake Michigan, but otherwise represents a downgrade across the board and will even likely have trouble accommodating the crowds brought in by bigger matchups. Getting to host two late-season home games at Wrigley Field is some solace, but Northwestern fans can best be consoled by the fact that the new and improved Ryan Field is on pace to open in 2026.
FINAL THOUGHT
Research studies have consistently shown home-field advantage to be a tangible metric, and while B1G fans didn't exactly need data to know that the teams atop our Hostlity Index (Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State) have more stronger home presence than others, establishing an actual hierarchy of home/away impact might be an edge.
Remember, NCAA college football odds can vary among the different sports betting apps, which is why it is useful to have a single source to track the various NCAAF betting odds.
