ATHENS — Georgia football fans might not think the Wallethub.com formula adds up when it comes to ranking the “Best Football Cities for Fans” in 2018.
Athens, home of the Bulldogs and storied Sanford Stadium, was ranked as the No. 4 football city in the Peach State, the No. 5 city in the SEC and No. 81 overall of the 244 cities and towns listed.
Pittsburgh was ranked the No. 1 overall football city, while Atlanta was the top-ranked Georgia football city (No. 14).
Nashville was technically the top SEC city (No. 24) — though that’s more likely because of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans — while Tuscaloosa was the top-ranked college football-only city in the SEC.
Knoxville and Columbia, S.C., two of the SEC East Division cities some Georgia football fans visit every other year, ranked No. 219 and 225, respectively.
NFL cities took the first 30 spots, with Jacksonville, Fla., 28th among the pro cities.
But Jacksonville, where the Bulldogs and Florida Gators meet each season was No. 28, ranked 228th with “least engaged college football fans.”
Wallet Hub’s ratings were determined using 21 key metrics, among them: Best performing teams, ticket prices, accessibility of stadiums, most engaged fans, number of coaches in past 10 seasons, and stadium capacity.
Georgia football cities rankings
No. 14 Atlanta
No. 53 Statesboro
No. 68 Kennesaw
No. 81 Athens
No. 147 Macon
No. 230 Savannah
SEC cities in rankings
No. 24 Nashville
No. 31 Tuscaloosa
No. 38 Baton Rouge
No. 42 Starkville
No. 81 Athens
No. 82 Oxford
No. 87 Auburn
No. 131 Gainesville
No. 141 College Station
No. 160 Columbia, Mo.
No. 185 Lexington, Ky.
No. 206 Fayetteville, Ark.,
No. 219 Knoxville,
No. 225 Columbia, S.C.
