Michie Stadium
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| |
| Full name | Blaik Field at Michie Stadium |
|---|---|
| Location |
700 Mills Road West Point, New York 10996 |
| Coordinates | 41°23′15″N 73°57′51″W / 41.38750°N 73.96417°WCoordinates: 41°23′15″N 73°57′51″W / 41.38750°N 73.96417°W |
| Owner | U.S. Military Academy |
| Operator | U.S. Military Academy |
| Capacity | 38,000[1] |
| Surface |
FieldTurf (2008–present) AstroPlay (2001–2007) AstroTurf (1977–2000) Grass (1924–1976) |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 1924 |
| Opened | 1924 |
| Expanded |
1962: east grandstand 1969: west upper deck 2003: press box |
| Construction cost | $300,000 |
| Tenants | |
|
Army Black Knights (NCAA) (1924–present) | |
| Website | |
| Michie Stadium | |
Michie Stadium /ˈmaɪki/ is an outdoor football stadium on the campus of the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. The home field for the Army Black Knights, it opened in 1924 and has a current seating capacity of 38,000.[2]
The stadium sits at the upper portion of campus, directly west of Lusk Reservoir. The field is at an elevation of 335 feet (102 m) above sea level and runs in the traditional north-south configuration, with the press box above the west sideline. Because of the view offered by its location overlooking the Hudson River and the medieval-style campus below, it was rated as Sports Illustrated's #3 sports venue of the 20th century.[3]
Overview
Dennis Michie
Michie Stadium is dedicated to the memory of Dennis Michie (1870–1898), who was instrumental in starting the football program while a cadet at the Academy. A member of the Class of 1892, Michie organized, managed, and coached the first football team at West Point in 1890. Six years after graduation, he was killed in Cuba during the Spanish–American War. There have been several renovations since the stadium's first game in October 1924, when Army defeated Saint Louis, 17–0.
Blaik Field
On September 25, 1999, the football field at Michie Stadium was named Blaik Field, in honor of Earl "Red" Blaik, the head coach at West Point from 1941 to 1958. Blaik led Army to three consecutive national titles from 1944 to 1946.
Playing surface
Since 2008, the playing surface has been FieldTurf. This replaced AstroPlay, which had been used since 2001. The stadium's playing field was natural grass until AstroTurf was installed in 1977.[2]
Army–Navy Game
Michie Stadium has hosted the Army–Navy Game only once, in 1943 during World War II. Neither Army nor Navy have played at an on-campus facility since very early in the rivalry, since teams' home stadiums are not nearly large enough to accommodate the crowds and media that usually attend the rivalry games. Their rivalry game is normally played at a neutral site between the campuses on the East Coast, usually in Philadelphia in early December.
Gallery
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Hoffman Press Box overlooks Blaik Field at Michie Stadium
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The Black Knights enter Michie Stadium on game day
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Michie Stadium from across the reservoir
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2008 - View Looking South into Hudson Valley
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2008 - View Looking North into Hudson Valley
References
- ↑ "Blaik Field at Michie Stadium". Retrieved December 15, 2015.
- 1 2 "Blaik Field at Michie Stadium". GoArmySports.com. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
- ↑ "Century's Best - SI's Top 20 Venues of the 20th Century". Sports Illustrated. 1999-06-07. Retrieved 2010-01-09.
External links
- Go Army Sports.com - official USMA athletics site - Michie stadium
- World Stadiums.com - photos - Michie Stadium
- Aerial photo (& topographic map) - Michie Stadium from USGS via Microsoft Research Maps
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