Stoll Field
 |
|
| Former names | Stoll Field (1916–1923) |
|---|---|
| Location | 202 Avenue of Champions Lexington, KY 40506 |
| Coordinates | 38°02′19″N 84°30′08″W / 38.03861°N 84.50222°WCoordinates: 38°02′19″N 84°30′08″W / 38.03861°N 84.50222°W |
| Owner | University of Kentucky |
| Operator | University of Kentucky |
| Capacity | 37,000 (1972) |
| Opened | October 14, 1916 |
| Closed | November 1972 |
| Tenants | |
| Kentucky Wildcats football (1916–1972) | |
Stoll Field/McLean Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It was the home of the University of Kentucky Wildcats football team. The field has been in use since 1880, but the concrete stands were opened in October 1916, and closed following the 1972 season, and was replaced by Commonwealth Stadium. Memorial Coliseum is located across the street from the site.
The stadium was a two-sided concrete structure, with bleachers in both endzones. It was named for Judge Richard C. Stoll, a prominent alumnus. In November 1924, the grandstands were renamed McLean Stadium in honor of Price Innes McLean, a former center for the Wildcats who had died from injuries sustained in the 1923 Kentucky-Cincinnati game.
The stadium was the home of the Wildcats during the Bear Bryant era (1946–1953), which included the team's first bowl appearance (in the 1947 Great Lakes Bowl), and their first Southeastern Conference (SEC) football championship (in 1950). Bryant's coaching tenure at the predominantly basketball-savvy school is regarded as the best era in UK's football history.
It is the site of the first recorded football game played in the South. A historic marker was erected in 2008 and reads –
Side 1 – "STOLL FIELD: In 1880 the first college football game ever played in the South was held here at what was eventually named Stoll Field. It was dedicated in 1916 at the Kentucky vs. Vanderbilt game and was named in honor of alumnus and long-term Board of Trustees member Judge Richard C. Stoll. The field was the setting of early football games and an integral part of student life.
Side 2 – MCLEAN STADIUM This field, which once pastured President Patterson's cows, was used for military training during World War I and in 1924 it held McLean Stadium. It was named for Price McLean, an engineering student who was fatally injured in a football game in 1923. McLean Stadium was the site of Kentucky football games until they were moved to Commonwealth Stadium in 1973.
...
Wikipedia