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Your guide attended the Ohio Stadium grand reopening on August 24. This $187 million renovation is part of what The Other Paper calls "AndyLand", over $300 million in athletic facilities in the western part of the Ohio State University campus erected or renovated under the supervision of OSU Athletics Director Andy Geiger.
When Ohio Stadium (otherwise known as the "Horseshoe", or just "the Shoe" locally) opened in 1922, it opened to criticisms of cost and construction methods--it is reportedly one of the first stadiums constructed of concrete, and many were questioning the stadium's long-term stability. As it is now renovated 81 years later, any of those critics would be eating crow if they were still alive today.
The horseshoe shape makes Ohio Stadium one of the most recognizable stadiums in college sports. Built at a cost of just over $1.3 million dollars, The Shoe originally seated 66,210. Addition of field and box seats, and later south seats brought the stadium's capacity to 89,841. Total seating capacity will be around 98,000 when the stadium renovation is complete in September.
Some of the most noticeable changes to the Shoe include an expanded press box, club seats priced at up to $3,000 per person, new permanent south seats, triple the number of restrooms, and more concessions.
Here's where the Bucks will run from the locker room to the field. Notice the overhead bars: intended to hold a canopy to protect from sun and rain. The opposition doesn't get this.
The new South seats. Made of concrete, they seem sturdier (and easier to navigate) than the old wooden ones. Photos ©2001 John C. Kazalia.
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