- Nippert Stadium
-
Nippert Stadium "The Nip" 
Location 2700 Bearcats Way (174 West Corry Street)
Cincinnati, Ohio 45221Coordinates 39°7′52″N 84°30′58″W / 39.13111°N 84.51611°WCoordinates: 39°7′52″N 84°30′58″W / 39.13111°N 84.51611°W Broke ground 1915 Opened September 27, 1924[1] Renovated 1936, 1954, 1970, 1991–1992, 2000, 2005 Owner University of Cincinnati Operator University of Cincinnati Surface FieldTurf (2000–present)
AstroTurf (1970–1999)
Grass (1924–1969)Construction cost $10.5 million USD
($135 million in 2011 dollars[2])Architect Frederick W. Garber Capacity 35,097 [3] Record attendance 35,106 [4] Tenants Cincinnati Bearcats (NCAA) (1924–1989,1991-present)
Cincinnati Bengals (AFL) (1968–1969)
OHSAA Southwest District/Regional HS playoffsNippert Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio is the University of Cincinnati's football stadium, home to their Bearcats football team in rudimentary form since 1901, and as a complete stadium since 1924, making it the fourth oldest playing site and fifth oldest stadium in college football.[5]
In 1895, the organizer of UC's first football team, Arch Carson, introduced a plan to build a stadium complete with wooden bleachers on the site upon which Nippert Stadium currently stands. The plans became a reality in 1901 while Carson was serving as UC's physical education director. The first game played on the site originally called Varsity Field in Burnett Woods was on November 2, 1901 vs the Ohio University Bobcats. Cincinnati was defeated 16-0 in that contest. They rebounded a week later and defeated Hannover on Varsity field November 9, 1901 10-0. Although Cincinnati has played home contests in other Cincinnati parks since then, this site has been the primary home of Cincinnati Football since that time. The playing surface at Nippert Stadium is called Carson Field in honor of Arch Carson.
In 1915, construction was completed on the first sections of a brick and concrete structure to replace the wooden stands and continued for several seasons as funds were raised. During the final game of the 1923 season with intrastate rival Miami University, UC player James Gamble Nippert sustained a spike wound injury. He died a month later of blood poisoning, reportedly due to having been infected by droppings left after a pre-game chicken race. Nippert's grandfather, James N. Gamble of Procter & Gamble, donated the required funds to complete the stadium. In 1924, the completed structure was dedicated as James Gamble Nippert Memorial Stadium with a capacity of 12,000. The field was lowered in 1936, allowing capacity to reach 24,000. In 1954, the Reed Shank Pavilion was completed, further increasing capacity to 28,000. The stadium was heavily renovated in 1992, making capacity at its current figure of 35,097. It has been updated many times through the years and currently seats 35,097 with a second tier on the East sideline.[5] On November 27, 2009 in a game against the University of Illinois Fighting Illini, the stadium broke the record for largest attendance in stadium history with an attendance of 35,106[6].
Nippert has earned a reputation throughout the Big East as a tough place to play.[citation needed] The stadium is sometimes described as a "Zoo" when packed full of 35,000 plus Bearcat fans. UC boasted a 14-game home winning streak at Nippert, dating from to 2007-2010.
The stadium served as home for the American Football League expansion team, the Cincinnati Bengals, in 1968 and 1969, while their eventual permanent home at Riverfront Stadium was being constructed. The stadium has served as a concert venue only once, on August 3, 1975 hosting The Ohio River Rock Festival (Aerosmith, Black Oak Arkansas, Blue Oyster Cult, Foghat, Mahogany Rush, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, REO Speedwagon and Styx; admission was festival seating/general admission). On November 2, 2008 Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama held a rally at Nippert two days before the election to an estimated 27,000 attendees.[7]
As the UC program has risen to prominence in the late 2000s, the small seating capacity of Nippert has become an issue. Former UC head coach Brian Kelly called for an expansion of Nippert, the smallest stadium in the Big East. The University is currently exploring options for expansion and renovation. Sources indicate that the expansion will add up to 15,000 seats, perhaps wrapping the upper deck all the way around the stadium, but exact details are unknown.[citation needed]
East Stands 2008
Exterior 2008References
- ^ http://www.databasefootball.com/College/teams/teamyear.htm?TeamID=21&Season=1924
- ^ Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2008. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
- ^ gobearcats.cstv.com
- ^ GoBearcats.com. "Cincinnati 49, Illinois 36 Postgame Notes". http://www.gobearcats.com/sports/m-footbl/recaps/112709aaa.html. Retrieved 2010-08-28.
- ^ a b Hemmer, Andy, Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal, May 6, 2000 [1]
- ^ gobearcats.cstv.com
- ^ Obama Rallies Voters at UC's Nippert Stadium, Kentucky Post, November 2, 2008 [2]
External links
Preceded by
First stadiumHome of the
Cincinnati Bengals
1968 – 1969Succeeded by
Riverfront StadiumUniversity of Cincinnati Campuses Uptown West Campus • Uptown Medical Campus • Victory Parkway Campus (select College of Engineering and Applied Science programs) • Raymond Walters College • Clermont College
Academics Academic Health Center (includes the Colleges of Allied Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy) • McMicken College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) • Carl H. Lindner College of Business • Clermont College • College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) • Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP) • College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services (CECH) • College of Engineering and Applied Science • The Graduate School • College of Law • Blue Ash College • Social WorkAthletics Cincinnati Bearcats • Fifth Third Arena • Nippert Stadium • Paul Brown Stadium • Marge Schott Stadium • Armory Fieldhouse • Sheakley Athletic Complex • University of Cincinnati Bearcat BandsMedia Football stadiums of the Big East Conference Carrier Dome (Syracuse) • Heinz Field (Pittsburgh) • High Point Solutions Stadium (Rutgers) • Mountaineer Field (West Virginia) • Nippert Stadium (Cincinnati) • Paul Brown Stadium (Cincinnati) • Papa John's Cardinal Stadium (Louisville) • Raymond James Stadium (South Florida) • Rentschler Field (Connecticut)
College football venues in Ohio Division I
FBSBig East Nippert Stadium & Paul Brown Stadium (Cincinnati)
Big Ten Ohio Stadium (Ohio State)
MAC Dix Stadium (Kent State) • Doyt Perry Stadium (Bowling Green) • Glass Bowl (Toledo) • InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field (Akron) • Peden Stadium (Ohio) • Yager Stadium (Miami)
Division I
FCSMissouri Valley Pioneer Division II GLFC McPherson Stadium (Central State) • Urbana University Stadium (Urbana)
GLIAC Community Stadium (Ashland ) • Donnell Stadium (Findlay) • Frosty Kalnow Stadium (Tiffin) • Jack Britt Memorial Field (Lake Erie) • Panther Field (Ohio Dominican)
Division III Heartland Coressel Stadium (Defiance) • Salzman Stadium (Bluffton) • Schueler Field (Mount St. Joseph)
North Coast Deeds Field–Piper Stadium (Denison) • Dill Field (Oberlin) • Edwards–Maurer Field (Wittenberg) • Henry Field (Hiram ) • John P. Papp Stadium (Wooster) • McBride Field (Kenyon) • Selby Field (Ohio Wesleyan)
Ohio Bernlohr Stadium (Capital) • Dial–Roberson Stadium (Ohio Northern) • Don Drumm Stadium (Marietta) • Don Shula Stadium at Wasmer Field (John Carroll) • Frost-Kalnow Stadium (Heidelberg) • George Finnie Stadium (Baldwin–Wallace) • Memorial Stadium (Otterbein) • McConagha Stadium (Muskingum) • Mount Union Stadium (Mount Union) • Williams Stadium (Wilmington)
UAA Case Field (Case Western Reserve)
NAIA Mid-States Categories:- Cincinnati Bengals stadiums
- Cincinnati Bearcats football
- Sports venues in Cincinnati, Ohio
- College football venues
- American Football League venues
- High school football venues in Ohio
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
