Nippert Stadium
Encyclopedia
Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio
is the University of Cincinnati
's football
stadium, home to their Bearcats football team
in rudimentary form since 1901, and as a complete stadium since 1924, making it the fourth oldest playing site and fifth oldest stadium in college football.
In 1895, the organizer of UC's first football team, Arch Carson, introduced a plan to build a stadium complete with wooden bleachers on the site upon which Nippert Stadium currently stands. The plans became a reality in 1901 while Carson was serving as UC's physical education
director. The first game played on the site originally called Varsity Field in Burnett Woods was on November 2, 1901 vs the Ohio University Bobcats. Cincinnati was defeated 16-0 in that contest. They rebounded a week later and defeated Hannover on Varsity field November 9, 1901 10-0. Although Cincinnati has played home contests in other Cincinnati parks since then, this site has been the primary home of Cincinnati Football since that time. The playing surface at Nippert Stadium is called Carson Field in honor of Arch Carson.
In 1915, construction was completed on the first sections of a brick and concrete structure to replace the wooden stands and continued for several seasons as funds were raised. During the final game of the 1923 season with intrastate rival Miami University
, UC player James Gamble Nippert sustained a spike wound injury. He died a month later of blood poisoning
, reportedly due to having been infected by droppings left after a pre-game chicken race. Nippert's grandfather, James N. Gamble of Procter & Gamble
, donated the required funds to complete the stadium. In 1924, the completed structure was dedicated as James Gamble Nippert Memorial Stadium with a capacity of 12,000. The field was lowered in 1936, allowing capacity to reach 24,000. In 1954, the Reed Shank Pavilion was completed, further increasing capacity to 28,000. The stadium was heavily renovated in 1992, making capacity at its current figure of 35,097. It has been updated many times through the years and currently seats 35,097 with a second tier on the East sideline. On November 27, 2009 in a game against the University of Illinois Fighting Illini
, the stadium broke the record for largest attendance in stadium history with an attendance of 35,106.
Nippert has earned a reputation throughout the Big East as a tough place to play. The stadium is sometimes described as a "Zoo" when packed full of 35,000 plus Bearcat fans. UC boasted a 14-game home winning streak at Nippert, dating from to 2007-2010.
The stadium served as home for the American Football League
expansion team, the Cincinnati Bengals
, in 1968 and 1969, while their eventual permanent home at Riverfront Stadium was being constructed.
The stadium has served as a concert venue only once, on August 3, 1975 hosting The Ohio River Rock Festival (Aerosmith
, Black Oak Arkansas
, Blue Oyster Cult
, Foghat
, Mahogany Rush
, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
, REO Speedwagon
and Styx
; admission was festival seating
/general admission). On November 2, 2008 Democratic
Presidential candidate Barack Obama
held a rally at Nippert two days before the election to an estimated 27,000 attendees.
As the UC program has risen to prominence in the late 2000s, the small seating capacity of Nippert has become an issue. Former UC head coach Brian Kelly called for an expansion of Nippert, the smallest stadium in the Big East. The University is currently exploring options for expansion and renovation. Sources indicate that the expansion will add up to 15,000 seats, perhaps wrapping the upper deck all the way around the stadium, but exact details are unknown.
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
is the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
's football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
stadium, home to their Bearcats football team
Cincinnati Bearcats football
The Cincinnati Bearcats football program represents the University of Cincinnati in a college football. They compete at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level as members of the Big East Conference. The Bearcat football program is one of the nation's oldest, having fielded a team as...
in rudimentary form since 1901, and as a complete stadium since 1924, making it the fourth oldest playing site and fifth oldest stadium in college football.
In 1895, the organizer of UC's first football team, Arch Carson, introduced a plan to build a stadium complete with wooden bleachers on the site upon which Nippert Stadium currently stands. The plans became a reality in 1901 while Carson was serving as UC's physical education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
director. The first game played on the site originally called Varsity Field in Burnett Woods was on November 2, 1901 vs the Ohio University Bobcats. Cincinnati was defeated 16-0 in that contest. They rebounded a week later and defeated Hannover on Varsity field November 9, 1901 10-0. Although Cincinnati has played home contests in other Cincinnati parks since then, this site has been the primary home of Cincinnati Football since that time. The playing surface at Nippert Stadium is called Carson Field in honor of Arch Carson.
In 1915, construction was completed on the first sections of a brick and concrete structure to replace the wooden stands and continued for several seasons as funds were raised. During the final game of the 1923 season with intrastate rival Miami University
Miami RedHawks football
The Miami University RedHawks, known as the Miami Redskins before 1996, are a NCAA Division I FBS college football program that competes in the Mid-American Conference...
, UC player James Gamble Nippert sustained a spike wound injury. He died a month later of blood poisoning
Sepsis
Sepsis is a potentially deadly medical condition that is characterized by a whole-body inflammatory state and the presence of a known or suspected infection. The body may develop this inflammatory response by the immune system to microbes in the blood, urine, lungs, skin, or other tissues...
, reportedly due to having been infected by droppings left after a pre-game chicken race. Nippert's grandfather, James N. Gamble of Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio and manufactures a wide range of consumer goods....
, donated the required funds to complete the stadium. In 1924, the completed structure was dedicated as James Gamble Nippert Memorial Stadium with a capacity of 12,000. The field was lowered in 1936, allowing capacity to reach 24,000. In 1954, the Reed Shank Pavilion was completed, further increasing capacity to 28,000. The stadium was heavily renovated in 1992, making capacity at its current figure of 35,097. It has been updated many times through the years and currently seats 35,097 with a second tier on the East sideline. On November 27, 2009 in a game against the University of Illinois Fighting Illini
Illinois Fighting Illini football
The Illinois Fighting Illini are a major college football program, representing the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. They compete in NCAA Division I-A and the Big Ten Conference.-Current staff:-All-time win/loss/tie record:*563-513-51...
, the stadium broke the record for largest attendance in stadium history with an attendance of 35,106.
Nippert has earned a reputation throughout the Big East as a tough place to play. The stadium is sometimes described as a "Zoo" when packed full of 35,000 plus Bearcat fans. UC boasted a 14-game home winning streak at Nippert, dating from to 2007-2010.
The stadium served as home for the American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
expansion team, the Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL...
, in 1968 and 1969, while their eventual permanent home at Riverfront Stadium was being constructed.
The stadium has served as a concert venue only once, on August 3, 1975 hosting The Ohio River Rock Festival (Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
, Black Oak Arkansas
Black Oak Arkansas
Black Oak Arkansas is an American Southern rock band named after the band's hometown of Black Oak, Arkansas. The band reached the height of its fame in the 1970s with ten charting albums released in that decade...
, Blue Oyster Cult
Blue Öyster Cult
Blue Öyster Cult, often abbreviated BÖC, is an American rock band, most of whose members first came together in Long Island, NY in 1967 as the band Soft White Underbelly...
, Foghat
Foghat
Foghat are a British rock band that had their peak success in the mid- to late-1970s. Their style can be described as "blues-rock," or boogie-rock dominated by electric and electric slide guitar. The band has achieved five gold records...
, Mahogany Rush
Mahogany Rush
Mahogany Rush is a Canadian rock band led by guitarist Frank Marino. The band had its peak of popularity in the 1970s, playing such venues as California Jam II together with bands such as Aerosmith, Ted Nugent and Heart....
, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country-folk-rock band that has existed in various forms since its founding in Long Beach, California in 1966. The group's membership has had at least a dozen changes over the years, including a period from 1976 to 1981 when the band performed and recorded...
, REO Speedwagon
REO Speedwagon
REO Speedwagon is an American rock band. Formed in 1967, the band grew in popularity during the 1970s and peaked in the early 1980s. Hi Infidelity is the group's most commercially successful album, selling over ten million copies and charting four Top 40 hits in the US...
and Styx
Styx (band)
Styx is an American rock band that became famous for its albums from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Chicago band is known for melding the style of prog-rock with the power of hard rock guitar, strong ballads, and elements of American musical theater....
; admission was festival seating
Festival seating
In live entertainment, there are several possible schemes for the seating assignment of spectators. There are several schemes which are most commonly used, though there are no hard and fast rules and alternate or modified schemes are sometimes used as is suitable to the event.-Reserved seating:In a...
/general admission). On November 2, 2008 Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Presidential candidate Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
held a rally at Nippert two days before the election to an estimated 27,000 attendees.
As the UC program has risen to prominence in the late 2000s, the small seating capacity of Nippert has become an issue. Former UC head coach Brian Kelly called for an expansion of Nippert, the smallest stadium in the Big East. The University is currently exploring options for expansion and renovation. Sources indicate that the expansion will add up to 15,000 seats, perhaps wrapping the upper deck all the way around the stadium, but exact details are unknown.