Opened 96 years ago in 1926, it was named Dyche Stadium for William Dyche, class of 1882, Evanston mayor from 1895 to 1899 and overseer of the building project.[6] The stadium was renamed Ryan Field in 1997 in honor of the family of Aon Corporation founder Patrick G. Ryan, who was then the chairman of Northwestern's board of trustees. The renaming was made by the other members of the board in recognition of the Ryan family's leadership and numerous contributions to Northwestern, including the lead gift to the Campaign for Athletic Excellence, Northwestern's fundraising drive for athletic facilities.
At the time it was constructed, Dyche Stadium was considered one of the finest college football stadiums in the country.[7] The stadium originally consisted of two semi-circular grandstands on either sideline, with the west (home) sideline having a small, curved upper deck whose 2 ends abut in matching concrete towers. The purpose of the curved grandstands was to maximize the number of fans sitting close to the action.[7] A preliminary proposal featured both the west and east grandstands having symmetrical triple decks but was never realized because of cost overruns resulting from an accelerated construction schedule and average attendance figures that rarely approached 50,000.[6] End zone seating was later added in the south, and in 1952 McGaw Memorial Hall was built beyond the north end zone.
The stadium had a natural grass surface when it opened. It switched to artificial turf in 1973 and was used until 1996. Prior to the 1997 season, the natural grass surface was restored, and the playing surface was lowered approximately 5 feet (1.5 m) to improve sight lines from the lowest rows of the stadium.
The Chicago Bears played their first home game of the 1970 season vs. the Philadelphia Eagles at Dyche Stadium on September 27 as an experiment; the NFL had required that the Bears move out of Wrigley Field because its seating capacity was under 50,000, which was below the minimum set out by the newly constituted post-merger NFL. Also, the Chicago Cubs were in a September pennant race with the Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Mets in the National League East.[8] If Wrigley Field was needed for postseason baseball games, the temporary grandstand for football along the east sideline (in right and center field) would not be available until late October. After Evanston residents petitioned city officials to block the team from moving there permanently and the Big Ten Conference opposed the Bears' use of Northwestern's stadium, the Bears ended up moving to Chicago's Soldier Field the following year.
It also hosted the summer College All-Star Game in 1943 and 1944, which had usually been instead held at Chicago's Soldier Field. Both games were played at night with the use of temporary lights.[10] The college all-stars held their practices for the game at Dyche Stadium in years such as 1934 and 1935.[11]
Pending replacement
Grandstands and exterior view in November 2006
On September 22, 2021, Northwestern announced that the Ryan family had donated $480 million to the university, the largest gift in its history. The gift will support several academic initiatives and provide initial funding for the replacement of Ryan Field by a new stadium at the current site.[12] Almost exactly a year later, Northwestern announced initial design concepts for the new stadium, and also announced that the Ryans had committed to adding to the initial stadium gift. The new Ryan Field will seat 35,000, more than 12,000 less than the current stadium, and will feature a canopy to better focus light and noise toward the field and away from the surrounding neighborhood. Also, it will be entirely privately funded.[13] It will have a much smaller footprint than the current stadium; Northwestern released a preliminary schematic indicating that the most distant seats would be roughly the same distance from the sidelines as the back rows of the lower deck of the (much larger) Notre Dame Stadium.[14] No date for construction has been announced; this will presumably depend on fundraising progress.
Renaming controversy
Northwestern's decision to rename Dyche Stadium to Ryan Field defied the university's own 1926 resolution that forbade such a change. School officials said that a private institution can override previous boards' decisions, and dismissed the earlier resolution as a "show of appreciation." But NU did not explain why a mere gesture of appreciation would expressly state that any football stadium at any location would retain the name Dyche, as indeed the 1926 resolution does. The Dyche family wasn't notified of the change; NU claimed that the only descendant they found was a grandniece, despite other family members living in Chicago and being listed in the phone book. After the family protested, NU said it was willing to install an informational plaque at the stadium, noting its former name.[15]
^ abc"Ryan Field". Ballparks.com. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
^"Northwestern Starts Work on New $1,000,000 Stadium". Chicago Daily Tribune. April 8, 1926. p. 26. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
^"Northwestern's New Field Named Dyche Stadium". Chicago Tribune. October 28, 1926. Retrieved September 28, 2011.
^1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda(PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States(PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved April 16, 2022.
^LaTourette, Larry (2005). Northwestern Wildcat Football. Chicago: Arcadia Publishing. p. 35. ISBN0-7385-3433-1. Retrieved September 28, 2011.
^ abPope, Ben. "Football: Northwestern and Ryan Field’s near-ascendency into college football glory," The Daily Northwestern (Northwestern University), Tuesday, November 22, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
^ abPridmore, Jay (2000). Northwestern University: Celebrating 150 Years. Northwestern University Press. p. 126.
^"Pennant race at a glance". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). September 16, 1970. p. 16.
^"DI Men's Track & Field (O) Championship History | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved 2022-01-21.
^Schmidt, Raymond (2001). Football's Stars of Summer: A History of the College All-Star Football Game Series of 1934-1976. Lanham, Maryland; London, England: Scarecrow Press. ISBN9780810840270. Retrieved April 21, 2015.
^"Ryan Family Makes Largest Gift in Northwestern History" (Press release). Northwestern Wildcats. September 22, 2021. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
^"Northwestern Releases Design Concepts for Dynamic New Ryan Field" (Press release). Northwestern Wildcats. September 28, 2022. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
^"Ryan Field: A New Vision". Northwestern University. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
^Morrissey, Rick (September 19, 1997). "For Dyche Clan, Perpetuity Didn't Last Long". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
^Bhattarai, Abha (May 1, 2007). . Daily Northwestern. Northwestern University. Archived from the original on May 3, 2007. Retrieved May 6, 2007.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ryan Field (stadium).
Official website
Ryan Field History, Northwestern University Archives, Evanston, Illinois
December 26, 2022
ryan, field, stadium, ryan, field, stadium, central, united, states, located, evanston, illinois, suburb, north, chicago, near, campus, northwestern, university, primarily, used, american, football, home, field, northwestern, wildcats, conference, only, stadiu. Ryan Field is a stadium in the central United States located in Evanston Illinois a suburb north of Chicago Near the campus of Northwestern University it is primarily used for American football and is the home field of the Northwestern Wildcats of the Big Ten Conference It is the only FBS stadium without permanent lighting and its current seating capacity is 47 130 Ryan FieldView from northeast corner in 2006EvanstonLocation in the United StatesShow map of the United StatesEvanstonLocation in IllinoisShow map of IllinoisFormer namesDyche Stadium 1926 1996 Location1501 Central StreetEvanston Illinois U S 1 Coordinates42 3 56 N 87 41 33 W 42 06556 N 87 69250 W 42 06556 87 69250 Coordinates 42 3 56 N 87 41 33 W 42 06556 N 87 69250 W 42 06556 87 69250OwnerNorthwestern UniversityOperatorNorthwestern UniversityCapacity47 130 1997 present Former capacity List 48 187 1996 49 256 1982 1995 48 500 1975 1981 55 000 1954 1974 52 000 1949 1953 47 000 1927 1934 25 000 1926 SurfaceGrass 1997 presentAstroturf 1973 1996Grass 1926 1972ConstructionBroke groundApril 8 1926 2 OpenedOctober 2 1926 96 years ago 1926 10 02 5 Renovated1996Expanded1949 1952Construction cost 2 6 million original 3 39 8 million in 2021 4 1996 renovation 20 millionArchitectJames Gamble Rogers 1 General contractorJ B French Construction Company 1 TenantsNorthwestern Wildcats NCAA 1926 present Websitenusports com ryan fieldOpened 96 years ago in 1926 it was named Dyche Stadium for William Dyche class of 1882 Evanston mayor from 1895 to 1899 and overseer of the building project 6 The stadium was renamed Ryan Field in 1997 in honor of the family of Aon Corporation founder Patrick G Ryan who was then the chairman of Northwestern s board of trustees The renaming was made by the other members of the board in recognition of the Ryan family s leadership and numerous contributions to Northwestern including the lead gift to the Campaign for Athletic Excellence Northwestern s fundraising drive for athletic facilities Contents 1 History 1 1 Pending replacement 2 Renaming controversy 3 Transportation 4 In popular culture 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksHistory Edit The stadium c 1930 1945 At the time it was constructed Dyche Stadium was considered one of the finest college football stadiums in the country 7 The stadium originally consisted of two semi circular grandstands on either sideline with the west home sideline having a small curved upper deck whose 2 ends abut in matching concrete towers The purpose of the curved grandstands was to maximize the number of fans sitting close to the action 7 A preliminary proposal featured both the west and east grandstands having symmetrical triple decks but was never realized because of cost overruns resulting from an accelerated construction schedule and average attendance figures that rarely approached 50 000 6 End zone seating was later added in the south and in 1952 McGaw Memorial Hall was built beyond the north end zone The stadium had a natural grass surface when it opened It switched to artificial turf in 1973 and was used until 1996 Prior to the 1997 season the natural grass surface was restored and the playing surface was lowered approximately 5 feet 1 5 m to improve sight lines from the lowest rows of the stadium The Chicago Bears played their first home game of the 1970 season vs the Philadelphia Eagles at Dyche Stadium on September 27 as an experiment the NFL had required that the Bears move out of Wrigley Field because its seating capacity was under 50 000 which was below the minimum set out by the newly constituted post merger NFL Also the Chicago Cubs were in a September pennant race with the Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Mets in the National League East 8 If Wrigley Field was needed for postseason baseball games the temporary grandstand for football along the east sideline in right and center field would not be available until late October After Evanston residents petitioned city officials to block the team from moving there permanently and the Big Ten Conference opposed the Bears use of Northwestern s stadium the Bears ended up moving to Chicago s Soldier Field the following year The stadium hosted the 1932 Women s July 16 and 1948 Men s July 9 10 US Olympic Trials for track and field The venue also hosted the NCAA track and field championships in 1943 9 It also hosted the summer College All Star Game in 1943 and 1944 which had usually been instead held at Chicago s Soldier Field Both games were played at night with the use of temporary lights 10 The college all stars held their practices for the game at Dyche Stadium in years such as 1934 and 1935 11 Pending replacement Edit Grandstands and exterior view in November 2006 On September 22 2021 Northwestern announced that the Ryan family had donated 480 million to the university the largest gift in its history The gift will support several academic initiatives and provide initial funding for the replacement of Ryan Field by a new stadium at the current site 12 Almost exactly a year later Northwestern announced initial design concepts for the new stadium and also announced that the Ryans had committed to adding to the initial stadium gift The new Ryan Field will seat 35 000 more than 12 000 less than the current stadium and will feature a canopy to better focus light and noise toward the field and away from the surrounding neighborhood Also it will be entirely privately funded 13 It will have a much smaller footprint than the current stadium Northwestern released a preliminary schematic indicating that the most distant seats would be roughly the same distance from the sidelines as the back rows of the lower deck of the much larger Notre Dame Stadium 14 No date for construction has been announced this will presumably depend on fundraising progress Renaming controversy EditNorthwestern s decision to rename Dyche Stadium to Ryan Field defied the university s own 1926 resolution that forbade such a change School officials said that a private institution can override previous boards decisions and dismissed the earlier resolution as a show of appreciation But NU did not explain why a mere gesture of appreciation would expressly state that any football stadium at any location would retain the name Dyche as indeed the 1926 resolution does The Dyche family wasn t notified of the change NU claimed that the only descendant they found was a grandniece despite other family members living in Chicago and being listed in the phone book After the family protested NU said it was willing to install an informational plaque at the stadium noting its former name 15 Transportation EditThe closest transit stations are Metra commuter railroad s Central Street station and Chicago Transit Authority s Central station on the Purple Line In popular culture EditParts of The Express The Ernie Davis Story a 2008 film about Syracuse University Heisman Trophy winner Ernie Davis starring Rob Brown as Davis and Dennis Quaid as Davis Syracuse coach Ben Schwartzwalder were filmed at Ryan Field 16 Parts of Four Friends a 1981 film directed by Arthur Penn were filmed at Dyche Stadium See also EditList of NCAA Division I FBS football stadiumsReferences Edit a b c Ryan Field Ballparks com Retrieved November 13 2013 Northwestern Starts Work on New 1 000 000 Stadium Chicago Daily Tribune April 8 1926 p 26 Retrieved November 13 2013 Northwestern s New Field Named Dyche Stadium Chicago Tribune October 28 1926 Retrieved September 28 2011 1634 1699 McCusker J J 1997 How Much Is That in Real Money A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States Addenda et Corrigenda PDF American Antiquarian Society 1700 1799 McCusker J J 1992 How Much Is That in Real Money A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States PDF American Antiquarian Society 1800 present Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Consumer Price Index estimate 1800 Retrieved April 16 2022 LaTourette Larry 2005 Northwestern Wildcat Football Chicago Arcadia Publishing p 35 ISBN 0 7385 3433 1 Retrieved September 28 2011 a b Pope Ben Football Northwestern and Ryan Field s near ascendency into college football glory The Daily Northwestern Northwestern University Tuesday November 22 2016 Retrieved March 10 2022 a b Pridmore Jay 2000 Northwestern University Celebrating 150 Years Northwestern University Press p 126 Pennant race at a glance Spokesman Review Spokane Washington September 16 1970 p 16 DI Men s Track amp Field O Championship History NCAA com www ncaa com Retrieved 2022 01 21 Recalling the Night That Nu Lit up the Big 10 Schmidt Raymond 2001 Football s Stars of Summer A History of the College All Star Football Game Series of 1934 1976 Lanham Maryland London England Scarecrow Press ISBN 9780810840270 Retrieved April 21 2015 Ryan Family Makes Largest Gift in Northwestern History Press release Northwestern Wildcats September 22 2021 Retrieved September 30 2022 Northwestern Releases Design Concepts for Dynamic New Ryan Field Press release Northwestern Wildcats September 28 2022 Retrieved September 30 2022 Ryan Field A New Vision Northwestern University Retrieved September 30 2022 Morrissey Rick September 19 1997 For Dyche Clan Perpetuity Didn t Last Long Chicago Tribune Chicago Illinois Retrieved July 10 2016 Bhattarai Abha May 1 2007 Bringing Hollywood to NU Daily Northwestern Northwestern University Archived from the original on May 3 2007 Retrieved May 6 2007 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ryan Field stadium Official website Ryan Field History Northwestern University Archives Evanston Illinois Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ryan Field stadium amp oldid 1120593272, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
