Ben van Ooyen
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Happy 94th Birthday to the ‘Shoe
Ben van Ooyen via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Today marks the 94th birthday for the home of your Ohio State Buckeyes – The Horseshoe. The ‘Shoe – designed by Howard Dwight Smith – was built by E.H. Latham Comapny at a total cost of 1.49 million dollars ($21,361,367.26 in today’s dollar). At the time of completion Ohio Stadium was the largest concrete structure in the world.
Courtesy of OSU Library
The first game played in Ohio Stadium took place 94 years ago today, when the Buckeyes took on Ohio Wesleyan University. The ‘Shoe packed in 25,000 eager fans to watch the Buckeyes play that day. The Buckeyes would go on to win 5-0 that day and would finish the 1922 season 3-4.
Since 1922 Ohio Stadium has undergone many renovations to keep the stadium in the top tier of stadiums across the nation. The capacity has been increased from its original 66,210 back in 1922 to its current capacity of 104,944. This has included adding seats into the stadium in the South stands as well as lowering the field back in 1998-99, removing the track that encircled the field to get fans closer to the action. The scoreboard has gone through some major renovations as well. The JumboTron in the South end zone was replaced with a 124 ft. x 42 ft. high definition video board with LED lights. The field is made up of FieldTurf since the 2007 season, as it was becoming too expensive to keep natural grass in a playable condition from week to week.
With the additions to Ohio Stadium’s seating in 2014, the stadium sits as the third largest stadium in the country, and fifth largest in the world. The Buckeyes also had lights put in permanently so that they would be able to host more night games without renting lights. The Buckeyes have hosted 19 night games at the Horseshoe since 1985.
While every home game is sold out at Ohio Stadium, there have been a few games that have overflowed the capacity over the last three years. Last year’s Michigan State win over the Buckeyes drew 108,975 fans to the game and most of them left pretty upset at the end of that one. The Buckeyes led the nation in average attendance in 2014 with 106,296 people per game, and set the national spring game record this past April when 100,189 fans showed up for a glorified scrimmage.
The Horseshoe has not only played host to the Buckeyes and their opponents over the years, but also to some major events. The ‘Shoe has hosted Pink Floyd, Genesis, Elton John, Billy Joel and The Rolling Stones along with a few country festivals. The Ohio High School Athletic Association also hosted all championship games for the seven divisions in 2014-2015 at the Horeshoe. This past July, Ohio Stadium hosted a 2016 International Champions Cup match between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid, drawing a record 86,641 fans for a soccer match.
If you have not had the luxury of attending a game or an event at Ohio Stadium, I highly suggest you make it one of your goals to make a visit. There is nothing like the feeling of when the band enters the field for the first time, and the players appear out of the tunnel. Cheering the Buckeyes on to victory with 106,000 of your closest friends is a feeling I will never forget.
The post Happy 94th Birthday to the ‘Shoe appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
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Ben van Ooyen via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Today marks the 94th birthday for the home of your Ohio State Buckeyes – The Horseshoe. The ‘Shoe – designed by Howard Dwight Smith – was built by E.H. Latham Comapny at a total cost of 1.49 million dollars ($21,361,367.26 in today’s dollar). At the time of completion Ohio Stadium was the largest concrete structure in the world.
Courtesy of OSU Library
The first game played in Ohio Stadium took place 94 years ago today, when the Buckeyes took on Ohio Wesleyan University. The ‘Shoe packed in 25,000 eager fans to watch the Buckeyes play that day. The Buckeyes would go on to win 5-0 that day and would finish the 1922 season 3-4.
Since 1922 Ohio Stadium has undergone many renovations to keep the stadium in the top tier of stadiums across the nation. The capacity has been increased from its original 66,210 back in 1922 to its current capacity of 104,944. This has included adding seats into the stadium in the South stands as well as lowering the field back in 1998-99, removing the track that encircled the field to get fans closer to the action. The scoreboard has gone through some major renovations as well. The JumboTron in the South end zone was replaced with a 124 ft. x 42 ft. high definition video board with LED lights. The field is made up of FieldTurf since the 2007 season, as it was becoming too expensive to keep natural grass in a playable condition from week to week.
With the additions to Ohio Stadium’s seating in 2014, the stadium sits as the third largest stadium in the country, and fifth largest in the world. The Buckeyes also had lights put in permanently so that they would be able to host more night games without renting lights. The Buckeyes have hosted 19 night games at the Horseshoe since 1985.
While every home game is sold out at Ohio Stadium, there have been a few games that have overflowed the capacity over the last three years. Last year’s Michigan State win over the Buckeyes drew 108,975 fans to the game and most of them left pretty upset at the end of that one. The Buckeyes led the nation in average attendance in 2014 with 106,296 people per game, and set the national spring game record this past April when 100,189 fans showed up for a glorified scrimmage.
The Horseshoe has not only played host to the Buckeyes and their opponents over the years, but also to some major events. The ‘Shoe has hosted Pink Floyd, Genesis, Elton John, Billy Joel and The Rolling Stones along with a few country festivals. The Ohio High School Athletic Association also hosted all championship games for the seven divisions in 2014-2015 at the Horeshoe. This past July, Ohio Stadium hosted a 2016 International Champions Cup match between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid, drawing a record 86,641 fans for a soccer match.
If you have not had the luxury of attending a game or an event at Ohio Stadium, I highly suggest you make it one of your goals to make a visit. There is nothing like the feeling of when the band enters the field for the first time, and the players appear out of the tunnel. Cheering the Buckeyes on to victory with 106,000 of your closest friends is a feeling I will never forget.
The post Happy 94th Birthday to the ‘Shoe appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
Continue reading...