Memorial Stadium, Bloomington

Memorial Stadium
The Rock
Location	1200 E 17th St Bloomington, Indiana
Broke ground	August 27, 1958
Opened	October 8, 1960
Owner	Indiana University Bloomington
Operator	Indiana University Bloomington
Surface	Grass (1960-69), Artificial (1970-97), Grass (1998-2002), AstroPlay (2003-present)
Construction cost	$4.56 million USD
Architect	Eggers & Higgins, New York
Tenants	Indiana Hoosiers (NCAA) (1960-Present)
Capacity	50,180

Memorial Stadium is a stadium in Bloomington, Indiana. It is primarily used for football, and is the home field of the Indiana University "Hoosiers". Memorial Stadium opened in 1960 as part of a new athletics area at the university and presently holds 50,180 people. The stadium is similar in structure to venues at Wake Forest (Groves Stadium) and Virginia Tech (Lane Stadium). It replaced the "old" Memorial Stadium, built in 1925, a 20,000 seat stadium located on 10th St where the arboretum now stands. There have been many renovations since the original construction, including installing artificial turf in 1970, the replacement of wooden seats with aluminum, installation of sound and lighting systems, and laying of a new AstroTurf surface in 1986^[1], which was subsequently replaced with natural grass in 1998. Prior to the 2003 season, that natural grass was removed. Indiana now plays football on a synthetic surface (AstroPlay). On June 1, 2003 a $3.5 million renovation of the Memorial Stadium press box was completed. In the summer of 2003 the Hoosier locker room in Memorial Stadium underwent a $250,000 renovation. The facelift to the original 1986 facility included renovating and modernizing the existing space with new carpeting, lighting and a new bulkhead ceiling along with the installation of custom-built oak wood lockers for 105 football players. The renovation was funded in large part by former Hoosier quarterback Trent Green and his wife Julie.^[2] In 2005, head football coach Terry Hoeppner had a southern Indiana limestone boulder nicknamed "The Rock" installed in the north end zone as a new campus tradition. This limestone boulder was found prior to Hoeppner's first season at IU in the practice field. It was removed, put on a granite slab and moved to the stadium. The Hoosiers and coach Hoeppner walked out and touched the Rock before running onto the field at every home game during Hoeppner's time as head coach. Terry Hoeppner died of brain cancer on June 19, 2007 and The Rock now serves as motivation for the team as well as a tribute to Hoeppner's influence on the football program. In September of 2006, Indiana University announced plans to expand Memorial Stadium. The north endzone will be enclosed. This will provide additional space for classrooms, a 24,000 sq. ft. weight/training room, a Hall of Fame, and expanded seating for football. The seating capacity will be around 53,500 after the completion of the expansion^[3]. The expansion will be part of an overall $55 million expansion of several Indiana University athletic facilities. Demolition of the North End Zone bleachers took place in January 2007^[4]. This left capacity for the 2007 season at 50,180 as 2000 seats were removed. The foundation of the building was completed on November 27, 2007 and the anticipated completion date for the project is Feb 2009.^[5]

References

1. ^ The IU Experience. Indiana University (2005). Retrieved on 2007-07-05.
2. ^ Facilities - Football. Indiana University (2007). Retrieved on 2007-07-05.
3. ^ H-T Sports Editor Doug Wilson & Sports Writer Chris Korman. The Herald-Times. Retrieved on 2007-07-05.
4. ^ Demolition of North End Zone Bleachers Kicks Off Facility Enhancement Plan. Indiana University (2007). Retrieved on 2007-07-05.
5. ^ Indiana University North End Zone Facility. Indiana University (2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-17.

Coordinates: 39°10′51.22″N, 86°31′32.24″W