Perkins Stadium is a stadium in Whitewater, Wisconsin. It is primarily used for American football, and is the home field of the 2007, 2009 and 2010 Division III Football Champion University of Wisconsin–Whitewater "Warhawks". Perkins Stadium opened in 1970 as Warhawks Stadium and held 11,000 people. It was later re-dedicated Perkins Stadium on September 14, 1996, after former football coach, Forrest Perkins. It was the sixth largest football stadium in Division III. It is also the host of the WSMA State Marching Band Championships.
Drum Corps International has held its annual Drum & Bugle Corps World Championships at the stadium two times in 1972 and 1973. This included the very first DCI Championship in 1972.
The stadium received new synthetic turf, bench areas, landscaping and other improvements including upgrades to the entrance area and scoreboard in 2008. With this upgrade the new seating capacity is now at 13,500 making it the largest stadium in Division III. The stadium project was part of UW-Whitewater's upgrade of all outdoor sports facilities.
In 2008, a record crowd of 11,028 was recorded for a game. However, that mark was shattered on October 9, 2010 as the Warhawks defeated University of Wisconsin-Stout 30-7 in front of a crowd of 12,189 fans. That was not only a Perkins Stadium record but also a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) record. The attendance figure elevated UW-Whitewater to second place in 2010 NCAA Division III football attendance.
Top 5 attendance games at Perkins Stadium over the past five years:
10/9/10 Stout 12,189 11/4/10 La Crosse 11,028 10/14/10 La Crosse 9,753 10/3/09 Platteville 9,157 10/13/07 Oshkosh 7,825
Preceded by first stadium |
Host of the Drum Corps International World Championship 1972 – 1973 |
Succeeded by Schoellkopf Field |
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