Photos by David Welch, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 3.71
Stegeman Coliseum 100 Smith St Athens, GA 30605
Year Opened: 1963
Capacity: 10,523
Glory, Glory to Old Georgia
Mention of the University of Georgia almost instantly conjures up images of barking fans celebrating the Bulldogs’ gridiron successes, most recently back-to-back football national championships claimed in 2021 and 2022. And while Georgia Football without a doubt is the flagship program on the Athens campus, the Georgia Athletic department boasts outstanding fan experiences across many of its athletic programs.
First sponsored as a varsity sport in 1978, volleyball at Georgia was played at the Women’s Physical Education Building until 1994, when it moved to the Ramsey Center from1995 until 2017. The program would begin transitioning out of the Ramsey Center into Stegeman Coliseum for matches in 2018.
As members of the Southeastern Conference, the Bulldogs experienced most of their success in the 1980s, claiming conference titles in 1985 and 1986.
Food & Beverage 3
Food at Stegeman Coliseum uses a self-serve, grab-and-go model. Items sit under heat lamps waiting to be picked up and taken to checkout stations. Options include hot dogs, burgers, and chicken or BBQ sandwiches. While most options are typical stadium quality, the burgers are from local boutique burger purveyor Grind House Burgers. Even though the food is fine for stadium fare, the fact that items are left out under heat lamps does seem to impact the quality.
Besides the above main dishes, other concession items include peanuts, popcorn, candy, and various other snack foods. There is also the ever popular Dippin’ Dots cart in the main lobby area. Soft drinks include items from the Coca-Cola line of products.
Though beer is sold at campus events, it does not appear to be available for volleyball matches – information on the volleyball website suggests it is available for select matches, however.
Atmosphere 3
Stegeman Coliseum is a great example of an arena from a previous generation that was given a highly modern feel, with a renovation of the east and west entry ways using large walls of glass. The interior of the arena complements the modernized feel of the exterior and fits right into the red and black color scheme of the Bulldogs. Also, in coming years the massive UGA mural at the south end of the arena will be replaced with the largest indoor collegiate video board in the country. There is not a lot of debate that Stegeman Coliseum is a very comfortable venue for all of Georgia’s programs that use it.
The University of Georgia Athletics Department does a good job creating an atmosphere where its brand is consistent throughout all its programs and with the prideful spirit of all things Bulldogs.
Throughout the match, cheerleaders, backed by a pared-down collection of the Red Coat Band, lead fans in familiar Georgia chants that have been engrained in Georgia fandom. Timeouts and changeovers are filled with singalongs, both of popular music and Georgia fight songs, as well as interactive scoreboard fan cams and games that entertain attendees, along with t-shirt tosses just prior to the ball being served back into play. Even when the in-game entertainment is focused more on popular music than on UGA favorites, fans are quick to their feet to sing and dance along.
The most impressive part of the experience is the re-creation of the “Light Up Samford” with a down scaled “Light Up Stegeman”, where the lights are turned down as the Georgia band plays “Krypton Fanfare”, as the flashlights of cell phones begin to sparkle, then bob up-and-down throughout the stands.
Even with the high level of support from those in attendance, one of the issues with using a facility such as Stegman Coliseum is that much of the excitement of the fans ends up dissipating into the emptiness of the second level seating.
Regardless of the size of the crowd, the fun nature of the traditions of Georgia’s athletic programs are consistent and go a long way in establishing a fun college volleyball environment.
Neighborhood 5
Athens is everything that could be asked for in a college town – far enough from Atlanta to remove the breakneck pace of a major city, but brimming with enough of the hustle-and-bustle of a college town to create a perpetual buzz of excitement in the air.
Georgia’s athletic facilities are spread out, with concentrations of both on and off campus facilities. Stegeman Coliseum is part of an on campus cluster which includes baseball’s Foley Field, the outdoor track, football’s practice and training facility, and the Butts-Mehre Building, the hub of University of Georgia Athletics.
The epicenter of Athens and the University of Georgia culture can be found along Lumpkin Avenue and Broad Street – this area has nearly an endless number of shops, bars, restaurants, and music joints, providing seemingly endless options to fill time at any time of day. New in 2024 are the Athens Rock Lobsters, who will call the newly completed Akins Ford Arena in downtown Athens home; adding in one of their games could certainly help make for a full visit of sports during a weekend in Athens.
Fans 3
There are a handful of colleges and universities at which being a fan transcends just one program. While football will always be the premier program at Georgia, the passion that is shown to the Dawgs on the gridiron bleeds over to other sports, and volleyball is no exception. Fans are extremely responsive to the chants and cheers that are consistent across all of Georgia’s athletic teams.
Even though much smaller in size than their football and basketball counterparts, the UGA “Spike Squad”, a collection of fans clad in red shoulder pads with spikes protruding from them, is ever present.
This season saw two of the volleyball Dawgs largest attendance figures, with more than 4,000 fans against rival Georgia Tech and a Stegeman Coliseum volleyball record 8,376 for their match against the South Carolina Gamecocks, as part of their “10K Day” promotion – the promotion encouraged Dawgs fans in town for the weekend’s football game to come out the night before to support the volleyball team. Typically, though, past history has shown attendance numbers here will fall within the mid-1,000 and creeping over 2,000 range against the rival Yellow Jackets and Florida Gators.
Access 3
It is no secret that getting to Athens from the metro Atlanta area on a weekday can certainly test one’s patience. While Athens is just 70 miles from Atlanta, getting there for a weekday match typically takes in excess of two hours. The most direct route is via Interstate-85 to Georgia 316, which leads to Athens. Fans coming from the north on I-85 will have a bit less traffic coming through Jefferson, while from the east, accessing Athens is most convenient on I-20 to US-441N.
Just south of Stegeman Coliseum, the Carlton Street Parking Deck is the most conveniently located parking location to the arena. This parking deck does charge a metered rate, payable at kiosks around the garage. Concrete information about parking, and whether or not there will be a cost during certain matches, seems to be difficult to come by, but all indications point to the East Deck providing free parking for volleyball. This lot is not as close to Stegeman Coliseum, however, so it leaves a bit of a walk.
Once inside, Stegeman’s outer concourse makes navigating the coliseum relatively easy, but the concourse doesn’t wrap completely around the arena. A secondary, interior concourse does fully encircle the playing area, and for volleyball matches is easy enough to move around to access seating.
Return on Investment 5
Free admission and free parking in the East Campus Deck goes a long way in giving fans a reason to come to matches beyond simply supporting Georgia volleyball. Concession prices are slightly higher than anticipated, especially considering portion sizes are a touch on the smaller side.
Extras 4
Stegman Coliseum doesn’t have a lot in the way of recognition of Georgia’s volleyball history, but one display pays tribute to all the Dawgs SEC volleyball championship teams; included in this recognition are the 1985 and ‘86 conference champions.
Georgia volleyball also does a good job at rewarding its most loyal of fans – the first 30 fans receive bracelets, allowing them access to floor seating.
The scoreboard at the southern end of the floor displays detailed statistics of individual players, along with running team statistics.
The Butts-Meher Building holds a place of high regard in the Georgia Bulldog community. Not only is it the center of Georgia Athletics, but also home to a museum of Bulldogs athletics history. The Butts-Meher Building is open for tours until 5pm Monday through Friday, making is a real option to visit prior to a volleyball match at Stegeman.
Final Thoughts
The use of a venue such as Stegeman Coliseum makes a lot of sense from a logistical and operational standpoint, but it does significantly impact the game experience. When considering that Georgia’s largest volleyball crowds still leave over 8,000 empty seats, this really dissipates the volume and energy created by the fans, and all those who work so hard to create what actually is a decent college volleyball atmosphere.
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