Having been open for eight decades, Memorial Stadium is a quaint
stadium in the heart of Kansas. Prior to moving into Memorial Stadium,
the Kansas Jayhawks, played at McCook Field. Like many other teams at
this time, the team outgrew their stadium. As 1920 rolled around fans,
students and faculty began the push for a new stadium for the team.
Led by Dr. F.C. Allen, construction began in early 1921 and was
completed the following fall. Legendary UCLA basketball coach John
Wooden helped build the stadium in 1921 when working for Kansas legend Phog Allen. Opening on October 29, 1921, the Jayhawks battled Kansas
State. Memorial Stadium was dedicated to the University of Kansas
students who fought and died in World War I. The stadium consisted of
grandstands on both the east and west sides of the field that could
seat 22,000 fans.
There was little time before the stadium was
expanded. In 1925 the east and west grandstands were extended to the
south end zone. Two years later stands on the north side of the field
were constructed giving Memorial Stadium’s its horseshoe shape and
seating 35,000. The next expansion came 35 years later when the west
side grandstands were expanded and a new press box was constructed. In
1965, the stands on the east side were expanded, allowing 51,500 fans
to see Jayhawk games. In the 1970s Astroturf replaced the grass field
and Memorial Stadium underwent structural repairs including the press
box being renovated. The stadium acquired its current capacity of
50,250 after the bleachers in the south end zone were removed and
replaced with permanent stands in 1992. The latest round of
renovations occurred prior to the 1999 season when a new press box
with 36 luxury suites was constructed and a new video/scoreboard was
placed in the south end zone. Prior to the 2009 season, Fieldturf was
installed at Memorial Stadium.
