| Amon G. Carter Stadium | |
|---|---|
| "Hell's Half-Acre" | |
| Location | 2850 Stadium Drive Fort Worth, TX 76129 |
| Broke ground | 1929 |
| Opened | October 11, 1930 |
| Owner | Texas Christian University |
| Operator | Texas Christian University |
| Surface | Grass 1930 to 1972 and 1992 to present Astro turf 1973 to 1991 |
| Construction cost | $164 million (2012 renovation) |
| Architect | William Jasdon HKS (2012 renovation) |
| Capacity | 22,000 (1930-1947) 30,500 (1948-1950) 33,000 (1950-1952) 37,000 (1953-1955) 46,083 (1956-1990) 44,008 (1991-2007) 44,358 (2008-2010) 34,000 (2011) 50,000 (2012-) |
| Record attendance | 50,307 (TCU vs. Utah, 2009) |
| Tenants | |
| TCU Horned Frogs (NCAA) (1930–present) Armed Forces Bowl (NCAA) (2003–2009; scheduled to return in 2012) |
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Amon G. Carter Stadium is an open-air football stadium on the campus of Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. It is the home stadium of the TCU Horned Frogs football team. It was named after Amon G. Carter, a prominent Fort Worth businessman, newspaper publisher, and city booster.
The stadium in currently undergoing a $164 million renovation, which began immediately after the 2010 football season and will be completed by the beginning of the 2012 season. A photo gallery of the stadium prior to its demolition and renovation can be found here
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In 1923 TCU received a generous donation from Mary Couts Burnett, the abused widow of a wealthy and well known Texas rancher. The Burnett donation constituted the egg for TCU's endowment. One condition of the Burnett donation was that a portion of it would be used for the construction of a new library, and it was decided to build the Mary Couts Burnett Library where the school's athletic field, Clark Field, was then located.
The removal of Clark Field necessitated the construction of a new field for athletic competition, especially in the sport of football. TCU played its first season of football in 1896, and since then had built a reputation of excellence garnering national attention, and joined the Southwest Conference in 1923.
In 1928 the school received a generous gift from local newspaper magnate and philanthropist Amon G. Carter, and in 1930 the school opened Amon G. Carter Stadium, where the TCU football team still plays.
Amon Carter stadium was constructed from 1929 to 1930 with an original seating capacity of 22,000. The stadium hosted its first football game on October 11, 1930, when TCU defeated the University of Arkansas.
Under head coach Dutch Meyer the TCU football team won a pair of national championships in the 1930's (1935 & 1938) and, despite the school's small enrollment, attendance steadily increased.
The first the expansion of the stadium took place in 1948, with construction raising the capacity by 8,500 to a total of 30,500. In 1951 and 1953, 2,500 and 4,000 more seats were added which raised capacity to 37,000 seats. An upper deck, topped by a two-story press box and highlighted with a large stylized "TCU," was added in 1956. This brought the stadium's capacity to 46,083.
In 1985 and 1991 improvements were made to the seating. This involved replacing the old seats in the lower bowl with aluminum bleachers. The upper-deck seats were later replaced in the same way. This reduced the stadium capacity to 44,008 spectators.
In 1992, the artificial turf, which had been in place since 1973, was replaced with natural grass. In 2002, the David E. Bloxom, Sr. Foundation helped install a new scoreboard and videoboard.
New club seats and luxury suites were added prior to the 2008 season, increasing capacity to 44,358.
In August 2010, TCU announced a $105 million renovation of the west side and north end zone of Amon G. Carter Stadium to better enhance football fans' experience, upgrade amenities and transform the historic Fort Worth icon into the "Camden Yards" of collegiate football stadiums.
Work on the renovation, which is funded completely by donor support (no bonds nor debt), began with the implosion of the west stands on December 5, 2010. It will be fully completed in 2012 and will cost a total of $164 million.
In 2000 TCU completed construction of the nearby John Justin Athletic Facility which houses team offices, lounges, locker rooms, meeting rooms, and a museum housing TCU's many athletic trophies, including Davey O'Brien's Heisman Trophy.
The Sam Baugh Indoor Practice Facility, completed in 2007, is also located nearby. In August 2011 TCU opened a brand new state of the art weight room and training facility.
Amon G. Carter Stadium most recently sold out for the October 24th, 2010 TCU vs. Air Force game; the announced attendance was 47,593.
Previous sell-outs occurred on September 25, 2010 against Baylor, against the Utah Utes in 2009, and then on September 16, 2006 when TCU defeated Texas Tech 12–3. Prior to the sellout against Texas Tech, the last sellout at Amon G. Carter was on November 17, 1984, when the 12th-ranked TCU fell to 10th-ranked Texas in a regionally televised contest on ABC. The attendance at the 1984 Texas game was listed as 47,280.
The highest ever recorded attendance at Amon G. Carter was 50,307, which occurred in 2009 against the University of Utah.[1]
The Armed Forces Bowl, previously the Fort Worth Bowl, has been played annually at Amon Carter Stadium since 2003. The bowl game was temporarily moved, however, to SMU's Gerald Ford Stadium in Dallas for the 2010 and 2011 bowl seasons due to the renovation.
Another bowl game, the Fort Worth Classic, was played at Amon Carter Stadium in 1920.
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