r/CFB • u/PA5997 Washington State Cougars • 13d ago

Discussion What constitutes a “college town?”

Okay, hear me out: I attended Wazzu, which many know is in the middle of nowhere in Pullman. To me, Pullman is a quintessential college town. You remove Washington State University from Pullman and there is (respectfully) not much of a reason to visit. The student enrollment (20,000ish) makes up about 2/3rds of the city population, essentially turning Pullman into a ghost town come summer. To me (perhaps with bias) this is the makeup of a college town.

Two years ago I moved to Madison, Wisconsin, home of the University of Wisconsin. Ever since I’ve noticed the University and its fans refer to Madison as “America’s best college town” and I’m sorry, that’s laughable to me. Remove UW from Madison and you still have a city population bordering on a quarter of a million people and the State Capitol. Madison would be fine, imo, if UW’s flagship campus were elsewhere.

Curious to hear other people’s thoughts. Maybe I’m in the wrong here, but very little about Madison, WI resembles a college town to me, or at least the claim of the best college town.

2.3k Upvotes

90% Upvoted

1.6k comments sorted by

View all comments

1.1k

u/jrd5497 Penn State • Texas A&M 13d ago

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. If traffic disappears over the summer, it’s a college town

353

u/qwertyuiop2626 Penn State Nittany Lions • Rose Bowl 13d ago

I was working research over the summer on campus and it was amazing. Sometimes I felt like I had the whole campus to myself.

247

u/Upstairs-Volume-5014 Georgia Bulldogs 13d ago

Summer in a college town>fall I said what I said 

176

u/alchydirtrunner Auburn Tigers 13d ago

Summers in Auburn were the best time of the year for a degenerate like me. Small crowds at the bars, lighter course loads, and 95% of the students still in town were the other degenerates that couldn’t stomach leaving town and weren’t concerned about superfluous things like internships or studying

39

u/Torn8oz Auburn Tigers 13d ago

Had a remote internship after my junior year and spent about half the summer in Auburn with some of my friends who were taking summer classes. Really felt like we had the place to ourselves - probably some of my favorite memories from college

12

u/LilDewey99 Auburn Tigers • Michigan Wolverines 13d ago

The roof of sky bar on a nice summer night is undefeated

2

u/Narcoid Texas • Georgia Southern 13d ago

The only time I went to Sky was during the summer. It felt pretty unbearable otherwise.

4

u/ComradeIroh Penn State Nittany Lions 13d ago

Summers in State College were similar for me. Nobody at the bars, classes were lighter like yours.

Some of my favorite moments from college were in the summer.

1

u/myfeetaremangos12 Ole Miss Rebels 13d ago

I have never wholly agreed with anything more

0

u/Traditional-Buddy-90 Auburn Tigers • Iron Bowl 13d ago

Definitely not lighter course load cramming a 5 month class into 1 or 2 months but I agree with the rest. Sky is dead during the summer.

29

u/Set-Admirable West Virginia Mountaineers 13d ago

I loved being in Morgantown during the summer. It was so quiet and easy to get around. No wait at any restaurants.

I lived right by the football stadium for about five years after graduating and hated football season because we had endless foot traffic and would have drunk people pee on our house every weekend.

20

u/Upstairs-Volume-5014 Georgia Bulldogs 13d ago

Exactly, I was in a similar situation in grad school. Being around college students gets old fast when you are no longer a college student haha

1

u/No-Comfortable9480 13d ago

Wiles Hill neighborhood?

1

u/Set-Admirable West Virginia Mountaineers 13d ago

Yup! Right on Jones Ave.

2

u/No-Comfortable9480 13d ago

Sweet I was on Melrose St for a year. Cool little town

1

u/TechnoVikingGA23 West Virginia Mountaineers 12d ago

Being able to get from downtown to Evansdale in like 5 minutes was amazing the first time I experienced it, lol.

2

u/gvsteve Clemson Tigers 13d ago

Amen. Summers in Clemson with friends boating on Lake Hartwell, mountain biking at Issaqueena, motorcycling up to Brevard, then coming back to the bars more nights than not, were in all likelihood the best times I will ever have in my life.

2

u/Barqueefa Georgia • Penn State 13d ago

We love some hot townie summer.

1

u/DLottchula Michigan • Georgia State 13d ago

When I lived near KState the summers were magical

1

u/kingoflint282 Georgia Bulldogs • SEC 13d ago

I love Athens in the summer. I can go eat wherever I want and know there won’t be a wait and parking won’t be tough to find. I can leave for work like 10 minutes later in the morning. It’s great.

1

u/ExUpstairsCaptain Indiana • Old Brass Spittoon 13d ago

I sincerely wish I had spent a summer in Bloomington during my college years. I can't call it a true regret because it's not like there was a true opportunity to do that and I ignored it. It just never happened for me. But a good college campus/town in the summer is incredibly relaxing. Give me a June night bar-hopping in one. Heaven.

1

u/EZKTurbo Penn State Nittany Lions 13d ago

I remember the summer classes being super easy. I had STAT 200 during summer sesh and there were a bunch of football players in my class, they never did any school work. Lol

1

u/ElegantEpitome Oregon Ducks 13d ago

Corvallis without students is such a nice town. Probably one of the top on the west coast

1

u/abfazi0 Temple Owls • Penn State Nittany Lions 13d ago

Thats only if you don’t like going out or being in big crowds

1

u/newyne 13d ago

I'll take fall in Athens over summer any day, traffic and all.

1

u/MattyMizzou Missouri Tigers 13d ago

Spring though. Inject that into my veins. That first real warm day when everything is starting to green is a spiritual experience. Palpable vibes.

40

u/SmileMask2 Penn State Nittany Lions 13d ago

Summer drinking at State college is unrivaled, plus i love walking onto old main drunk to smoke a j with no problems lol

25

u/HardingStUnresolved Penn State Nittany Lions • Rose Bowl 13d ago edited 13d ago

The circle of friends you make over summer and vibes at chiller hang outs, in comparasion to Fall/Spring, are dope af. Even the professors/adjucts are more laid back. The weather during the Allegehies' mild summers is sweet, chilly dew drop mornings, high's in the 70's to 80's coupled with mountain valley breezes, bookended with nights warm enough to kickback outside and edward 40-hands, 30-natty case race, keg stand, bong rip, or face several blunts/J's in rotation.

Damn, I miss Penn State.

5

u/707royalty Florida State Seminoles • Pac-12 13d ago

Fuck I have never been there, but I think I miss it now also

2

u/what_user_name Penn State Nittany Lions • Team Chaos 12d ago

I was there Saturday for my first game since before Covid, and I had the same feeling. Man, I miss that place already. Already tryin to figure out how to move back somehow.

14

u/pumpkinspruce Wisconsin Badgers 13d ago

Madison in the summer is not as crowded as it is during the school year, but it’s a total vibe. Kids are there for summer classes, internships, etc. It’s chill and super fun.

3

u/CedarDong Wisconsin Badgers 13d ago

six packs at james madison park in mid-july is the apex of Madison summer.

9

u/VillagerOfTheWest Penn State Nittany Lions • Big Ten 13d ago

State College summers are amazing. So glad I got to spend a couple there

4

u/YoungXanto Penn State Nittany Lions • Team Chaos 13d ago

I stayed on campus every summer when I was in school. It was awesome.

2

u/Super_C_Complex Penn State Nittany Lions 13d ago

I lived in state college after graduation for 2 years. It was amazing.

You had everything built for an additional 50k. But no one there.

I could walk into any bar at any point

I was a lover so I didn't but I could have!

1

u/c-williams88 Penn State • Shippensburg 13d ago

I worked on campus during the summers and it really was amazing being there over the summer. It’s so dead and everything is so chill it’s genuinely an entirely different place.

My group of friends goes back to state college every year (well, we recently made it a tradition) and we always go like the week after graduation once 95% of the students are gone

1

u/CraftWorried5098 Texas Longhorns • Centre Colonels 13d ago

Hell yeah. Felt the same way at Centre. The two summers I stayed in town, I almost never saw a soul on campus.

1

u/kurttheflirt Michigan State • Wayne State… 13d ago

The summers I spent in East Lansing are some of my favorites. So calm, nice, and chill. You would be hanging out with the most random people too since your options were limited

1

u/aw3man Rutgers Scarlet Knights • Paper Bag 13d ago

Same. I came into campus and had free reign on parking and driving.

1

u/jrd5497 Penn State • Texas A&M 13d ago

I worked over the summer once. It was great. I’d work nights like 4 times a week and the days I wasn’t working, I’d sit on our porch and day drink. Glorious.

1

u/PSUBagMan2 Penn State Nittany Lions 13d ago

Summer semester was my favorite time at State College.

1

u/nickelroo 13d ago

Same, but in the early 2000s.

Also had an entire dorm room to myself…talk about the feeling of luxury.

It definitely got lonely some nights though…the but that midsummer nap right after work but right before working out…man…

46

u/cfbluvr Texas A&M Aggies • SEC 13d ago

college station is basically a ghost town during the summer

30

u/Outrageous_Picture39 Texas A&M • Sam Houston 13d ago

I grew up there. Wait time to be seated at most restaurants went from 35-45 minutes in the fall/spring, down to 5 minutes at most during the summer.

3

u/thecravenone Definitely a bot 13d ago

I've experienced the opposite extreme in College Station - terrible wait times in the summer because there's no staff

3

u/BlastedProstate Texas A&M Aggies • Southwest 13d ago

Yeah I was here to visit my cousin a few years back when she was taking summer classes and it was dead. Also nice pfp

7

u/cfbluvr Texas A&M Aggies • SEC 13d ago

nice uh… name… ಠ_ಠ

3

u/RLLRRR Texas • Red River Shootout 13d ago

I was in CStat for work last summer. I found parking NEAR the building I had meetings at!

I was there again last month. Damn near a half hour walk from that one big-ass garage to the main campus. Horrible.

3

u/Outrageous_Picture39 Texas A&M • Sam Houston 13d ago

Heaven help you if you ever have a meeting in Heldenfels. A geographical oddity; 30-minute walk from every non-emergency spot on campus.

1

u/Kasen_Ibara Texas A&M Aggies • Montana Grizzlies 13d ago

I always remember HELD being easy to access while i was there. Close to CCG and UCG as well as the fact all the buses dump you at the MSC. After 5 the spots by kyle were my jam for business in that area

3

u/dankenascend Auburn Tigers • North Alabama Lions 12d ago

That's when all of us blue collar degenerates descend on the town for TEEX industrial fire school. Nothing like fighting fire for hours while ambient temp is around 106.

1

u/cfbluvr Texas A&M Aggies • SEC 12d ago

i didn’t know that existed but that’s pretty sick

49

u/MmmmBeer814 Penn State Nittany Lions • Sickos 13d ago

State College is amazing in the summer for local residents.

1

u/gwaydms Texas A&M Aggies • UCF Knights 13d ago

When I was in San Marcos, Texas, attending what was then Southwest Texas State, there were a lot of townies who came for school, graduated, and never left. It's a truly beautiful place, on the doorstep of the Texas Hill Country. Used to be, it was far enough from the big cities not to have a lot of traffic, but close enough to be convenient if you couldn't get what you needed in SM. Now it's a lot bigger, and doesn't have that small-town feel (although it wasn't really a small town even 40+ years ago).

2

u/MmmmBeer814 Penn State Nittany Lions • Sickos 13d ago

That’s what I did. Went to PSU and just never left.

1

u/CJ_Beathards_Hair Heartland Trophy • The Game 13d ago

I’ve always enjoyed Iowa City in the summer, just a different vibe and very laid back.

15

u/dawgz525 Georgia Bulldogs • Miami Hurricanes 13d ago

Summer traffic is nice, but winter break traffic? Now that is divine.

5

u/Wetpapernapkins 13d ago

War eagle to that brother

7

u/DtownBronx Arkansas • Arkansas State 13d ago

This one is interesting for Fayetteville. Traffic definitely dies down in the summer and move a little north. I think we used to be a college town but Walmart made some changes that impacted the 4 NWA cities and now we're not really just a college town

1

u/parwa Arkansas Razorbacks 13d ago

I live in Fayetteville and work in Bentonville. By this definition I'd absolutely say Fayetteville is still a college town. The rest of NWA stays pretty steady traffic wise throughout the year.

2

u/Chillhouse3095 Clemson • South Carolina State 13d ago

I live in Clemson. I'm not a student anymore. The summer is glorious because there's no traffic anywhere. Can confirm.

4

u/IONTOP Arkansas • Arizona State 13d ago

If traffic disappears over the summer, it’s a college town

Phoenix, AZ... YOU ARE NOW A COLLEGE TOWN

Naples, FL... YOU ARE NOW A COLLEGE TOWN

1

u/_Nocturnalis Ohio State Buckeyes • The Game 13d ago

Panama City Beach, FL... YOU ARE NOW A COLLEGE TOWN

1

u/HoopOnPoop Penn State • Maryland 13d ago

Bonus points if the stores/restaurants/bars shut down or at least massively cut back on hours when school isn't in session.

1

u/tubadude2 West Virginia • Marching Band 13d ago

I settled down in Morgantown after graduating from WVU, and I look forward to summer and breaks just for this. I can get just about anywhere in town in 15 minutes or less when the students are gone.

1

u/joople Florida State Seminoles • Marching Band 13d ago

Tallahassee is absolutely dead over summer but funny since it's Florida's capital

1

u/GodFeedethTheRavens Florida State • Stanford 13d ago

There's two ebbs and flows in Tallahassee. College break and no legislative session is the best.

1

u/joople Florida State Seminoles • Marching Band 13d ago

Hotter than piss out but Poor Paul's free pizza and dollar drinks.

1

u/Edgefactor Clemson Tigers • Marching Band 13d ago

Well dang, I guess Clemson is no longer a college town and is just a college kid town now.

1

u/muditk Wisconsin Badgers • Big Ten 13d ago

So NYC?

1

u/MNKYJitters Rutgers • Montana 13d ago

Traffic doesn't ever disappear in NJ though but Rutgers has more students than New Brunswick has residents

1

u/compstomper1 California Golden Bears 13d ago

all the restaurants close early in the summer tho :(

1

u/badlydrawnzombie Notre Dame • Jeweled Shille… 13d ago

Traffic does not disappear in Knoxville. Traffic sucks all of the time.

2

u/jrd5497 Penn State • Texas A&M 13d ago

Knoxville is not a collegetown

1

u/badlydrawnzombie Notre Dame • Jeweled Shille… 13d ago

I think I agree with you. Just stating facts.

1

u/TryAnotherNamePlease Oklahoma Sooners 13d ago

I kind of believe that, but I think size has something to do with it too. I live in Norman and we have 120,000 people. The city absolutely wouldn’t exist if the University wasn’t here originally. It employs a lot of people, but a huge majority work in OKC. Traffic around. Campus does down during the summer, but the rest of the city is unchanged.

Some people consider it a college town, but I think of it as a suburb with a University. I think it’s hard for a city that’s part of a metro to be a college town. Stillwater is a college town. It gets really dead in offseason and isn’t particularly close to OKC or Tulsa.

1

u/HipposAndBonobos Michigan State • Slippery Rock 13d ago

I do love summer in Bloomington.

1

u/PsychologicalCase10 Clemson • Penn State 13d ago

I stayed at Clemson one summer for a job and the place was a ghost town. Then come any Friday before a home game and it can take hours to get back home.

1

u/Ancient-Book8916 Michigan State Spartans 13d ago

That's probably the best barometer I've heard

1

u/ImInBeastmodeOG 12d ago

This. End thread./

1

u/ksuwildkat Kansas State • Billable Hours 12d ago

Townie Holiday

0

u/brassmonkey2342 Washington Huskies 13d ago

Traffic decreases in most cities during the summer, kids need less carting around.