Doak Campbell Stadium
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Bobby Bowden Field at Doak Campbell Stadium is the football stadium on the campus of the Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. It is the home venue for the university's Seminoles football team. The stadium was named for Doak S. Campbell, a past president of the university and the field was named for head football coach Bobby Bowden. The stadium is part of the University Center complex, a mixed-use facility encompassing university office space, university classrooms, the university's Visitor's Center, souvenir store, The University Center Club, as well as skyboxes and press boxes for use during football games. Following the latest expansion in 2003, the stadium has a seating capacity of 82,300. On November 20, 2004 in accordance with an act of state legislation, the stadium and field were renamed Bobby Bowden Field at Doak Campbell Stadium.
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[edit] History
The stadium, named after former Florida State President Doak S. Campbell, hosted its first game against the Randolph-Macon College Yellowjackets on October 7, 1950 with the Seminoles winning the game 40-7. At that time the facility had a seating capacity of 15,000. Florida State first began play at Centennial Field during the team's inaugural 1947 season and would continue to play there for the following two years (1948 and 1949). The stadium has expanded numerous times; from 15,000 seats to 19,000 in 1954, to 25,000 in 1961 and to 40,500 between the years 1960 and 1970. Since that time, the stadium has expanded to almost 83,000, largely in part to the success of the football team under head coach Bobby Bowden coupled with the ever growing student body. It now is the largest football stadium in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Aesthetically, a brick facade surrounding the stadium matches the architectural design of most of the buildings on the university's campus. In addition to the obvious recreational uses, The University Center surrounds the stadium and houses many of the university's offices.
[edit] Statues and Stained Glass
[edit] Unconquered
A 19 foot (5.8 m) tall bronze sculpture by Fritz White depicting Chief Osceola and Renegade. A tradition was immediately put in place whereby at sunset, on the night before home football games, as the Marching Chiefs play, Osceola's spear was set aflame as students, alumni, and fans gather around the statue to show their support. The flame was later extinguished at sunrise on the morning following the game. As of March, 2006, the university decided to light the spear for several reasons, including: selection into the NCAA basketball tournament, "National Player of the Year" awards for any sport, conference championships, graduations and convocations, etc.[1] A small inscription near the base of the statue reads: "This statue does not depict any particular person or event. Rather, it symbolically portrays the unconquered spirit of the Seminole people of the 19th century and the timeless legacy of that spirit that continues to burn bright into the future.". The statue was unveiled at the Williams Family Plaza on October 10, 2003, and "Unconquered" was engraved in its stone pedestal on September 2, 2005.
[edit] Sportsmanship
A bronze sculpture by Edward Jonas, is a 15-foot (4.6 m) tall statue depicting a standing football player extending his arm to help pick up a fallen rival on the field. In 2002 the statue was selected by the National Sculpture Society to be showcased in its special exhibit "Sports Sculpture". A one-quarter life size scale model represented the sculpture in the New York exhibition. The statue is located at the Al D. Strum Plaza.
Bobby Bowden sculpture
A 9 foot (2.7 m) tall bronze statue of head football coach Bobby Bowden, created by W. Stanley "Sandy" Proctor, was unveiled outside of the Coyle E. Moore Athletic Center on September 25, 2004 and was dedicated along with the Les and Ruth Akers Plaza.
[edit] Stained glass window
A three-story, stained-glass window commemorating the naming of the field was unveiled on November 20, 2004, the day of the annual Florida State/Florida game. The window depicts Bowden overlooking the field among a sea of fans in the stands. The 30-by-20-foot window was installed over the entrance of the Moore Athletic Center. Created by Florida State artist Robert Bischoff, his wife, JoAnn, and 12 Florida State students in the Master Craftsman Program, the window is among the five largest stained glass windows in the United States.
[edit] Seminole Family in Bronze
This new addition to the outside of the stadium was unveiled on Friday, October 20, 2006. The statue was designed by Brad Cooley, Sr. and Brad Cooley, Jr. of Lamont, Florida. Known as "Seminole Family in Bronze", the statue shows what may have been a typical Seminole family around the time of the Seminole Wars in the 1800s. [2]
[edit] Stadium by the numbers
[edit] Stadium capacities
| Years | Capacity |
|---|---|
| 1950-1953 | 15,000 |
| 1954-1960 | 19,000 |
| 1961-1963 | 25,000 |
| 1964-1977 | 40,500 |
| 1978-1979 | 47,413 |
| 1980-1981 | 51,094 |
| 1982-1984 | 55,246 |
| 1985-1991 | 60,519 |
| 1992 | 70,123 |
| 1993 | 72,589 |
| 1995 | 77,500 |
| 1996-2001 | 80,000 |
| 2001-2002 | 82,000 |
| 2003- | 82,300 |
[edit] Top 10 single season home attendances
| No. | Year | Games | Total | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 2003 | 6 | 498,895 | 83,149 |
| 2. | 2004 | 6 | 497,047 | 82,841 |
| 3. | 2002 | 6 | 490,598 | 81,766 |
| 4. | 2001 | 6 | 488,645 | 81,441 |
| 5. | 2000 | 6 | 484,985 | 80,830 |
| 6. | 1998 | 6 | 482,941 | 80,490 |
| 7. | 1999 | 6 | 472,350 | 78,725 |
| 8. | 1996 | 6 | 465,200 | 77,533 |
| 9. | 1994 | 5 | 382,663 | 76,533 |
| 10. | 1995 | 6 | 447,950 | 74,658 |
[edit] Stadium's top 10 crowds
| No. | Attendance | Year | Opponent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 84,347 | 2005 | University of Miami |
| 2. | 84,336 | 2003 | University of Miami |
| 3. | 84,223 | 2004 | University of Florida |
| 4. | 84,155 | 2004 | University of Virginia |
| 5. | 84,106 | 2002 | University of Notre Dame |
| 6. | 83,938 | 2002 | University of Florida |
| 7. | 83,854 | 2003 | North Carolina State University |
| 8. | 83,717 | 2005 | Syracuse University |
| 9. | 83,538 | 2004 | Clemson University |
| 10. | 83,510 | 2006 | Clemson University |
