#kylefield

Shoplifters Issue 9: DRAWINGS poster by Actual Source

One of the largest stadiums in the world can be found on the campus of a university in Texas, and in this post, we'll take a closer look at some interesting Kyle Field history facts, a stadium that holds some impressive records!

1. Kyle Field is located in a city in East-Central Texas

Kyle Field is an enormous stadium located on the campus of the Texas A&M University, a university located in the city of College Station in Texas. This city is located in East-Central Texas and is situated about 83 miles (130 kilometers) northwest of Houston and about 87 miles (140 km) east-northeast of Austin, the capital city of the State. The city itself isn't that big with a population of just below 100,000, even though the metropolitan area has a population of over 270,000 people, making it the 13th-largest in Texas.

College Station / Aggie0083 / https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

2. It was named for the man who built the original stadium

The stadium is the home venue of the Texas A&M Aggies football team and has been since the year 1904, the year that the original version of the stadium was built. This original and humble stadium was built by a man named Edwin Jackson Kyle (1876-1963), a man who had graduated from A&M University in 1899, a teacher in the horticulture department. Because of this, some land was assigned to him on the campus which he was supposed to use for agricultural purposes. Instead, he fenced it and used this section as an athletics field for the students.

Edwin Jackson Kyle / Wiki Commons

3. The original seating capacity of the stadium was 500

Did we say that the original version of the stadium was quite a bit humbler than the enormous stadium located on the campus today? Well, that's because it really was! Kyle bought a wooden grandstand from a local market and built wooden bleachers to provide seating accommodations. This resulted in the official seating capacity of the stadium being raised to a whopping 500! The man's efforts didn't go unnoticed and ever since 1906, voices were raised to name the stadium in Kyle's honor. It was unofficially known as "Kyle Field" since then but didn't receive this official name until the year 1956, the year this name was approved by the Texas A&M Board of Regents.

The stadium in the 1920s / Wiki Commons

4. The first concrete stadium was built in the year 1929

By the time the name was officially named after Edward Jackson Kyle, it looked quite different than the stadium he put together himself. The first concrete stadium was completed in the year 1929 at a cost of $365,000 which was quite a hefty sum at the time. The stadium had the shape of a horseshoe, a popular design at the time, and had a seating capacity of 32,890 spectators. By 1953 this was even expanded to 41,500 spectators with the addition of a partial second deck and press box.

Kyle Field in 1930 / Wiki Commons

5. The first major sets of renovations were completed in 1967

The first phase of the additional second deck was finally completed in the year 1967, a renovation and expansion which cost a whopping $1.84 million. This brought the seating capacity to 48,000. Further expansions happened in the 1970s and 1980s which brought the seating capacity to over 70,000 spectators, an enormous stadium already by then!

Old press box / Blueag9 / https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

6. The playing surface consisted of real grass until the year 1970

One of the most remarkable Kyle Filed History facts is that the playing surfaces consisted of real grass until the year 1970. It was only then that Astroturf was installed. The surface was changed back, however, to real grass, which was in 1996. Following this move, the playing surface has received nothing but praise for its excellent conditions, mainly due to the constant maintenance of the groundkeepers who work on it day in and day out.

The stadium with 3 decks / Ed Schipul / https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en

7. The capacity grew to over 80,000 at the turn of the century

One of the most remarkable expansion phases happened in the late 20th century when the Bernard C. Richardson Zone was added. This was done at a cost of $32.9 million USD and increased the capacity to 82,600 seats. In the early 2000s, further additions were made to the stadium complex, including Bright Football Complex which overlooks the playing field on the south end, new dressing rooms, the largest training and rehabilitation facilities, and one of the best academic centers in the country!

Bernard C. Richardson Zone in 2007 / Ronw526 / https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

8. It became one of the biggest stadiums in the world by 2015

The biggest renovation in Kyle Field History was completed between 2013 and 2015, a project that cost a grand total of $485 million USD! This increased the seating capacity to 102,733 (current capacity), something that turned the stadium into the 6th biggest stadium in the world! The record attendance in the stadium was set on October 11, 2014, when 110,633 people watched how Texas A&M lost to the Ole Miss Rebels by 35–20. It's also the largest stadium in Texas, the largest in the Southeastern Conference, and the fourth-largest stadium in the NCAA, and the 4th-largest stadium in the United States!