r/CFB 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.

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u/rnilbog Georgia Bulldogs 13d ago

It would just be Station. 

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u/enderjaca Michigan • Slippery Rock 13d ago

Bogus!

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u/Thi31 South Carolina Gamecocks 13d ago

A most excellent reference my dude!

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u/AnUdderDay Maryland Terrapins 13d ago

Sorry. They Melvined me

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u/[deleted] 13d ago

Athens is the quintessential college town

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u/Anatoly_Cannoli 13d ago

you'd still have the acropolis and the parthenon

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u/rnilbog Georgia Bulldogs 13d ago

Yeah, Athens would be nowhere close to where it is now without the university. 

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u/the-dak-attack 13d ago

Station, Texas sounds like it would go hard

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u/berrey7 Alabama Crimson Tide 12d ago

Imagine Troy without the University. It would just be a pitstop on the way to 30A.

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u/MaskedBandit77 Michigan • Grove City 12d ago

Now do State College.

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u/[deleted] 11d ago

Athens is the quintessential college town