The College Football Hall of Fame was located in South Bend, Indiana from 1995 to 2012, but recently relocated to call Atlanta home. The Hall opened its doors earlier this year in August and is located right off of Centennial Olympic Park across the way from World of Coca-Cola and the Georgia Aquarium.
When you get there, they hand you a badge that you scan according to a school of your choice. I, of course, chose Alabama! 🙂 Once scanned, your school’s helmet lights up on the wall in the lobby! It’s a very cool system, and the badge links you to lots of different exhibits throughout the museum.
As you go up to the second floor, they have a huge television set up with hundreds of interactive videos and pictures from the majority of the schools. They also had a lot of the trophies there, including the new National Championship trophy for the College Football Playoff. The BCS era is over, and the CFP has begun.
As you walk through the museum, you learn all about how college football has changed since the first college football game in 1869 from uniforms to tailgating to rules. The museum highlights the famous rivalries, players, coaches and games that make college football, well college football. Each part of the exhibit had something interactive too. You simply scan your badge and everything you do is linked to your account online. So, we sang the Alabama fight song, I took part in ESPN’s College GameDay, we decorated our faces, we led teams to championship games, we played virtual football and got to explore 360 views of stadiums.
The top floor is the actual Hall of Fame. They have interactive boards that have all the players and coaches from your school. You can learn about their stats and more. Around the room is a list of each induction class. They also have interactive boards where you can listen to speeches from players and coaches at the award presentation ceremonies.
On the first floor is the Skill Zone. My brother and I decided to take part in this. I attempted to make a field goal at 10 yards out but ended up being way off. My brother was able to get it through the uprights, though! We also ran routes (I caught the ball) and then had to show off our arms with our passing skills.
It was a pretty great experience, and I highly recommend checking out the College Football Hall of Fame!
