As a quaint and unique stadium, Ross Ade Stadium has been the home of the Purdue Boilermakers since the mid 1920s. Before the construction of Ross Ade Stadium, the Purdue football team played at Stuart Field. During the first few decades of the 20th century, Purdue had a very successful football program. Purdue alumni David Ross and George Ade provided significant financial support to help construct a new stadium for the football team in the early 1920s. The stadium was built on land purchased by Ross and Ade.
The Purdue Boilermakers played their first game at Ross Ade Stadium on November 22, 1924, against the Indiana Hoosiers. The stadium originally seated 13,500 fans, with grandstands on the east and west sides of the playing field. As interest in the football team grew, Purdue continued to expand Ross Ade Stadium. The first addition came in 1930, when 5,000 seats were added in the north end zone. A permanent grandstand on the west side was constructed before the 1949 season, increasing the seating capacity to 51,295. One year later, a new press box was built on the west side. In 1955, permanent stands were constructed on the east side of Ross Ade Stadium, increasing the capacity to 55,500.
By 1963, the university had lowered the playing field to allow for 13 additional rows of seats around the field. The final section of temporary seating was eliminated before the 1969 season, when permanent stands were constructed in the north end zone, increasing the seating capacity to 62,500. Since 1969, relatively few major changes have been made to Ross Ade Stadium. In 1997, a new video scoreboard was installed in the south end zone, and prior to the 2002 season, a new press box was completed on the west side. This project also included 34 luxury suites and 200 club seats.
Today, a single tier grandstand in a horseshoe configuration surrounds the playing field. Additional bleachers are located in the south end zone, where the main scoreboard is located. Unlike many other college football stadiums, Ross Ade Stadium has always featured a natural grass playing surface. In June 2014, Purdue announced plans to remove 6,100 bleacher seats from the south end zone. The area was repurposed, reducing the seating capacity of Ross Ade Stadium. Before the start of the 2017 season, lights were added to the stadium at a cost of $6.5 million, allowing the Boilermakers to host night games. The seating capacity increased to over 61,000 before the start of the 2023 season as a $45.4 million renovation was completed, that included additional seating in the south end zone.
