Hey I just completed my annual Cuse Road Trips Rated article for this year. It will be published soon at https://www.nunesmagician.com /.

I can't go into too much depth for each game but I try to go a bit deeper than the usual click bait. I rate the games with several factors:

Factors considered:
• Fun Stuff/Food in surrounding area
• Weather (will I freeze my ass off for the date scheduled?)
• Ease and cost of travel, lodging (varied choices and reasonable costs)
• Parking ease and tailgate atmosphere (game day cash lots that have tailgating)
• Desirability of rival (excitement of a win over them)
• "Winnability” of game (Chance of a win this season)
• Stadium amenities and atmosphere (On-campus is a huge plus)
• Uniqueness (That once in a generation trip location is a plus)


Ohio actually tied for first with Virginia Tech this year. FSU, Louisville and NCSt are the other road trips this year. All five were close in scoring.

My comments to be published:

1. Ohio, Saturday, September 4th, 7PM

What is annually heard around the 315 for opening weekend, “I’d go but for the State Fair and the last weekend of summer”? So this trip won’t be too popular. However you are missing out on a great road game. The game gets the highest marks for weather with it being a night game. If I had to guess I expect a small Cuse crowd of 500-750. This is actually the closest drivable trip for CNY’ers at 8.5 hours with limited stops. Athens, OH and Ohio U. are raved about for being a charming city and a beautiful campus. This game makes a great 3-4 day weekend getaway over Labor Day weekend. Downtown Athens is filled with many restaurants (something about 25K students) and most are reasonably priced. In town I hear Jackie O’s is the place to go. For our more energetic types this sounds fun. Ohio’s campus is actually in a hilly part of Ohio. Ohio U. is considered one of the prettiest settings in the USA. So if you want something different and unique try this game. Be aware that motels in Athens are pricey. You might have to look at nearby cities like Parkersburg, WV, Marietta, OH and Zanesville, OH. Travel by air is through Columbus and it about 75 mins away. Travel by car is another story. It allows you many different opportunities to take side trips. I’m considering a stop at the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

Peden Stadium is on campus and large for a MAC school. However, it suffers from a hideous expansion around the end zone which gives it a high school look. The students come out and support the team much better than some much larger programs. The marching band is large and one of the best in the country. I figure Cuse will be a slight underdog for the game and the Bobcat fans will love nothing better than to beat a P5 team. Parking will be easy with numerous cash lots for $5 and $10 around the campus. The students party err tailgate hard but my impression is tailgating among the adults is not on the level of the B1G and ACC.

NOTE: I have several hyperlinks in the published article to provide more info.

What am I missing? Links are helpful...thanks

Come on, you're too smart to repeat this drivel.

For those who are into trains a trip up to Nelsonville is worthwhile. The Hocking Scenic Railway is a bit more scenic in October than over Labor Day but it's still a fun trip. https://www.hvsry.org /

A link to a band performance which for many is the highlight of the day, would be a good addition. After their probation and then losing last yea, the 110 is ready to go.

It's about average for a MAC stadium.

And as The Sporting News once observed, Peden is the Wrigley Field of college football - all red brick with white trim. But instead of being surrounded by metro Chicago, the views from Peden have you gazing at the Appalachian foothills.

Definitely not my cup of tea but it’s mentioned seemingly everywhere and it fits with our Halloween celebration narrative. I do find the conspiracy about Athens being centered on some ley lines entertaining, probably because I’m a map nerd.

If you are counting just the seats there are 21,600 in the stadium. 14,000 in the main grandstands, 5,000 in the corners, 1,000 in the Tower Club and 1,600 in the Phillips Club. This and the fact the stadium infrastructure was created to support a 14,000 seat stadium its small by MAC standards.

27,000 number the media guide is counting all SRO capacity which increased with the hill and increased again with the academic center. Prior to the academic center completion in 2018, the top Ohio crowd in Peden was 25,893 so I could believe the 27,000 figure in a stadium footprint that is 20,000 sqft larger than before.

In Peden you can get a SRO atmosphere with crowds north of 22,000 in a way you aren't able to with the same type of crowd in another MAC stadium because of how tight the seating is.

As an engineer and a man of science, I thought you’d tell us about the chemistry behind “the stain.” I was told once about how the decomposing body produced that stain via the interactions of various body chemicals, but don’t really remember the details.

It is interesting that Athens never became “haunted” until a few hippies in the 1960s decided it was because of some weird arrangements of local cemeteries. This story appeared in some local rags, and then the myth building started. It soon blossomed into a cottage industry. At least the ghost legends in places like Gettysburg started much earlier, and hence are slightly more intriguing if just as devoid of reality. [Extra credit for sneaking in a Civil War reference.]

Let me guess: They became zombies and were transported to Roswell, NM, by space aliens, and then returned to Court Street where late on a Saturday night they appear to students exiting the Union.

I heard that after they became zombies they enrolled at Fiami.

Keep the comments coming...LOL

I made some edits to the article with your suggestions. I'll post here when the article goes live.

Whatever the West End Tavern is calling itself now (West End Ciderhouse) is also nice if you want something a little more tame than the Uptown/Student Bar scene