1501 Central St. 

October 5, 2013 was the ultimate example of what Ryan Field can be. With ESPN’s College Gameday in town for a showdown with Ohio State, energy was soaring. The student section filled up beyond its 5,000-person capacity, and everyone in it donned purple and chanted for their school. The Wildcats delivered an impressive performance and a dramatic (though unsatisfying) ending, leaving an entire student body glowing with pride. Even if not every game lives up to those impossible standards, Ryan Field provides a consistently enjoyable football-viewing experience. There’s time for tailgates before games (in “Fitzerland” or elsewhere), and once inside it’s always fun to cheer your school, surrounded by several thousand of your closest friends. The student section is close to field with clear sightlines, and the athletic department’s recent decision to move it across the field means more TV time for students. Overall, Ryan Field is the place on campus that cultivates the most school spirit. It’s truly an essential NU experience to stand on those bleachers (preferably when it’s warm) and lose half your voice yelling on the opposing team’s third downs with your claw in the air — even if you don’t know what “third down” means and think the claw thing is kind of goofy. You don’t have to like football to enjoy Ryan Field. You just have to like Northwestern.

— Alex Putterman