| Memorial Stadium | |
|---|---|
| "The Brick House" | |
| Location | University Ave SE Minneapolis, MN 55455 |
| Broke ground | March 6, 1924 |
| Opened | October 4, 1924 |
| Closed | November 21, 1981 |
| Demolished | 1992 |
| Owner | University of Minnesota |
| Operator | University of Minnesota |
| Surface | Natural grass (1977-81) Tartan Turf (1970-76) Natural grass (1924-69) |
| Capacity | 56,652 (1970-81) 52,809 (1924-69) |
| Tenants | |
| Minnesota Golden Gophers (NCAA) (1924-81) | |
Memorial Stadium, also known as the "Brick House," was an outdoor athletic stadium on the campus of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. It was the home of the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team for 58 seasons, from 1924 until 1981. Before moving to Memorial Stadium in 1924, the Gophers played at Northrop Field. Starting in 1982, the Gophers played their home games in the new Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, and Memorial Stadium was demolished a decade later. After 27 seasons indoors, the Gophers returned to campus in 2009 at the new TCF Bank Stadium, a block from the site of Memorial Stadium.
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The stadium opened on October 14, 1924. It was dedicated to 3527 students, graduates, and workers who served in World War I, which ended six years earlier. The stadium sat on approximately 11 acres (45,000 m²).
During that span the team won six national championships including three consecutive (1934-1936). The championship years were 1934, 1935, 1936, 1940, 1941, and 1960. The official capacity of the stadium during the 1970s was listed as 56,652. The stadium seated approximately 66,000 people with additional temporary bleachers, although many of the seats were far away from the field. The stadium's attendance record was 66,284, set in 1966 against Purdue on November 18th.[1]
Memorial Stadium also served as the university's track and field venue, and was an occasional back-up venue for professional football and soccer. In 1969, the NFL's Minnesota Vikings played a regular season game against the Green Bay Packers at Memorial Stadium, due to a conflict with a Minnesota Twins playoff game at Metropolitan Stadium. The Vikings also played a 1971 pre-season game at Memorial. The Minnesota Kicks of the NASL played one game at Memorial Stadium, which was also their last. They played a 1981 playoff game there on September 6th against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers and lost 3-0. The game was moved due to a schedule conflict with the Minnesota Twins at Met Stadium.
Memorial Stadium served as the anchor for Stadium Village, a small commercial area at the southeast portion of the Twin Cities campus.
Pressured by downtown Minneapolis business interests and athletic boosters, the school elected to move out of the stadium to the new Metrodome, about two miles (3 km) away, during the spring of 1982. Athletic director Paul Giel cited the advantages of recruiting by playing in a new NFL venue. Also, the attendance was expected to go up in the late fall with protection from harsh weather.[2] The stadium had been neglected by this time, and was badly in need of renovation.[2] New coach Lou Holtz gave an impassioned speech when the time came in 1984 to decide whether to remain at the Metrodome, and declared that "athletes want to play at the Dome."[2]
Following the move, the University of Minnesota proposed a new natatorium that would extend into the field at the open end of the horseshoe and ensure that there could be no return to Memorial Stadium. After legal challenges to halt construction of the natatorium failed, the Aquatic Center opened in 1990 and the stadium was torn down two years later. The original brick entrance arch was preserved, and when the McNamara Alumni Center was built on the same site it was installed in the interior atrium over the entrance to a small museum.
The move to the Metrodome proved to be disappointing in the long run, as the home games lost the charm of being on a college campus.[3] The Gophers had the lowest priority in scheduling, behind the Twins and Vikings, and had to move games if the Twins were in the baseball playoffs. The university also gave up most concession and parking revenue, although their portion of the rent was the lowest of the three Metrodome tenants.
On May 20, 2006, the Minnesota state legislature passed a bill providing funding for a new stadium on the university campus, to be named TCF Bank Stadium and completed in the fall of 2009. The original Memorial Stadium site could not be used, due to the construction of the aquatic and alumni centers. The new stadium is located about a block from where the old stadium once stood, and was designed so that the alumni center on the old site is visible through the open end of the horseshoe.
| Year | Total | Games | Season highest | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1924 | 139,772 | 6 | Illinois (35,341) | 23,297 |
| 1925 | 193,707 | 7 | Notre Dame (49,009) | 27,672 |
| 1926 | 156,032 | 5 | Michigan (58,362) | 31,206 |
| 1927 | 166,848 | 5 | Wisconsin (48,443) | 23,126 |
| 1928 | 146,185 | 5 | Chicago (53,016) | 29,237 |
| 1929 | 204,083 | 6 | Michigan (58,160) | 34,014 |
| 1930 | 167,728 | 6 | Northwestern (50,225) | 27,955 |
| 1931 | 115,631 | 5 | Wisconsin (48,443) | 23,126 |
| 1932 | 113,956 | 5 | Northwestern (52,426) | 43,557 |
| 1933 | 164,301 | 6 | Iowa (41,177) | 27,384 |
| 1934 | 192,922 | 5 | Michigan (59,362) | 38,584 |
| 1935 | 217,785 | 5 | Northwestern (52,426) | 43,557 |
| 1936 | 247,653 | 5 | Iowa (61,172) | 49,531 |
| 1937 | 254,188 | 5 | Notre Dame (63,237) | 50,838 |
| 1938 | 237,000 | 5 | Michigan (54,212) | 47,400 |
| 1939 | 229,954 | 5 | Northwestern (52,372) | 45,991 |
| 1940 | 234,990 | 5 | Michigan (61,976) | 46,998 |
| 1941 | 239,227 | 5 | Northwestern (61,784) | 47,845 |
| 1942 | 231,307 | 6 | Michigan (52,351) | 38,551 |
| 1943 | 182,779 | 7 | Purdue (38,709) | 26,111 |
| 1944 | 179,979 | 6 | Northwestern (39,997) | 29,997 |
| 1945 | 246,931 | 6 | Ohio State (55,789) | 41,155 |
| 1946 | 328,003 | 6 | Michigan (59,037) | 54,667 |
| 1947 | 289,612 | 5 | Purdue (61,087) | 57,922 |
| 1948 | 308,556 | 5 | Purdue (65,549) | 61,711 |
| 1949 | 305,200 | 5 | Wisconsin (63,139) | 61,040 |
| 1950 | 267,015 | 5 | Iowa (60,312) | 53,403 |
| 1951 | 224,759 | 5 | Nebraska (54,573) | 45,152 |
| 1952 | 270,292 | 5 | Iowa (60,376) | 54,058 |
| 1953 | 293,313 | 5 | Michigan (62,795) | 58,663 |
| 1954 | 347,555 | 6 | Iowa (65,464) | 57,926 |
| 1955 | 305,581 | 5 | USC (64,074) | 61,116 |
| 1956 | 372,654 | 6 | Iowa (64,235) | 62,109 |
| 1957 | 314,769 | 5 | Purdue (64,629) | 62,954 |
| 1958 | 282,230 | 5 | Iowa (63,726) | 56,446 |
| 1959 | 256,039 | 5 | Michigan (56,082) | 51,208 |
| 1960 | 342,199 | 6 | Iowa (65,292) | 57,033 |
| 1961 | 361,929 | 6 | Purdue (66,284) | 60,322 |
| 1962 | 368,200 | 6 | Iowa (65,061) | 61,367 |
| 1963 | 286,797 | 5 | Michigan (61,817) | 57,759 |
| 1964 | 268,908 | 5 | Iowa (62,514) | 53,782 |
| 1965 | 302,747 | 6 | Michigan (58,519) | 50,458 |
| 1966 | 248,248 | 5 | Iowa (62,631) | 49,600 |
| 1967 | 237,798 | 6 | Michigan State (56,334) | 39,633 |
| 1968 | 312,806 | 6 | USC (60,820) | 52,134 |
| 1969 | 272,449 | 6 | Ohio State (52,972) | 45,417 |
| 1970 | 225,468 | 5 | Nebraska (52,539) | 45,093 |
| 1971 | 207,662 | 6 | Michigan (44,412) | 34,610 |
| 1972 | 222,079 | 6 | Iowa (44,196) | 37,013 |
| 1973 | 252,917 | 6 | Nebraska (56,782) | 42,153 |
| 1974 | 226,127 | 6 | Ohio State (45,411) | 37,688 |
| 1975 | 220,081 | 7 | Wisconsin (37,578) | 31,440 |
| 1976 | 262,878 | 6 | Iowa (53,222) | 43,813 |
| 1977 | 247,118 | 7 | Michigan (44,165) | 35,303 |
| 1978 | 231,411 | 6 | Ohio State (52,209) | 38,569 |
| 1979 | 241,952 | 6 | Purdue (47,281) | 40,325 |
| 1980 | 265,105 | 6 | Iowa (58,158) | 44,184 |
| 1981 | 301,248 | 7 | Michigan (52,875) | 43,035 |
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