Bobby Bowden Field at Doak Campbell Stadium
is the football stadium on the campus of the Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. It is the home venue for the university's football team, nicknamed the Seminoles. The stadium was named for Doak S. Campbell, the president of the university at the time of its construction, and the field was named for legendary head football coach Bobby Bowden. The stadium is part of the University Center complex, a mixed-use facility encompassing university office space, university classrooms, the university's Visitor's Center, souvenir store, The University Center Club, as well as skyboxes and press boxes for use during football games. Following the latest expansion in 2003, the stadium has a seating capacity of 84,300. On November 20, 2004 in accordance with an act of state legislation, the stadium and field were renamed Bobby Bowden Field at Doak Campbell Stadium. Prior to the start of the 2007 Season a new state of the art sound and public address system was installed. Before the 2008 Seminole Football Home Season two new HD Scoreboards were installed. The main one in the north endzone measures over 100ft, the south endzone has a 45 foot scoreboard. Six new LED ribbon boards were installed in each of the four corners of the stadium as well as underneath the north scoreboard, over the player entrance and above the entrance used by the Marching Chiefs. The new boards allow for more game stats and more information on other games in addition to improved replay viewing.
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DOAK CAMPBELL STADIUM TICKETS
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History
The stadium, named after former Florida State President Doak S. Campbell, hosted its first game against the
Randolph-Macon College Yellowjackets on
October 7,
1950 with the Seminoles winning the game 40–7. At that time the facility had a
seating capacity of 15,000. Florida State first began play at
Centennial Field
during the team's inaugural
1947 season and would continue to play there for the following two years (
1948 and
1949). The stadium has expanded numerous times; from 15,000 seats to 19,000 in
1954, to 25,000 in 1961 and to 40,500 between the years
1960 and
1970. Since that time, the stadium has expanded to almost 83,000, largely in part to the success of the football team under head coach
Bobby Bowden coupled with the ever growing student body. It now is the largest football stadium in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Aesthetically, a
brick facade surrounding the stadium matches the architectural design of most of the buildings on the university's campus. In addition to the obvious recreational uses, The University Center surrounds the stadium and houses many of the university's offices. The field was officially named Bobby Bowden field on November 20, 2004 as Florida State hosted intrastate rival Florida. The FSU Warchant began during the Auburn game in 1984 and has since spread to be used by fans of the Atlanta Braves and Kansas City Chiefs.
[1]
Statues and stained glass
Unconquered
A 19 foot (5.8 m) tall
bronze sculpture by
Fritz White depicting
Chief Osceola and Renegade. A
tradition was immediately put in place whereby at
sunset, on the night before home football games, as the
Marching Chiefs play, Osceola's
spear was set aflame as students, alumni, and fans gather around the statue to show their support. The flame was later extinguished at
sunrise on the morning following the game. As of March,
2006, the university decided to light the spear for several reasons, including: selection into the
NCAA basketball tournament, "National Player of the Year" awards for any sport, conference championships, graduations and convocations, etc. A small inscription near the base of the statue reads: "This statue does not depict any particular person or event. Rather, it symbolically portrays the unconquered spirit of the
Seminole people of the 19th century and the timeless legacy of that spirit that continues to burn bright into the future.". The statue was unveiled at the Williams Family Plaza on
October 10,
2003, and "Unconquered" was engraved in its stone pedestal on
September 2,
2005.
Sportsmanship
A bronze sculpture by
Edward Jonas, is a 15-foot (4.6 m) tall statue depicting a standing football player extending his arm to help pick up a fallen rival on the field. In
2002 the statue was selected by the
National Sculpture Society to be showcased in its special exhibit "Sports Sculpture." A one-quarter life size scale model represented the sculpture in the
New York exhibition. The statue is located at the Al D. Strum Plaza.
Bobby Bowden sculpture
A 9 foot (2.7 m) tall bronze statue of head football coach
Bobby Bowden, created by
W. Stanley "Sandy" Proctor, was unveiled outside of the
Coyle E. Moore Athletic Center on
September 25,
2004 and was dedicated along with the Les and Ruth Akers Plaza.
Stained glass window
A three-story,
stained-glass window commemorating the naming of the field was unveiled on
November 20,
2004, the day of the annual Florida State/Florida game. The window depicts Bowden overlooking the field among a sea of
fans in the stands. The 30-by-20-foot window was installed over the entrance of the
Moore Athletic Center. Created by Florida State artist
Robert Bischoff, his wife, JoAnn, and 12 Florida State students in the Master Craftsman Program, the window is among the five largest stained glass windows in the
United States.
Seminole Family in Bronze
This new addition to the outside of the stadium was unveiled on Friday,
October 20,
2006. The statue was designed by Brad Cooley, Sr. and Brad Cooley, Jr. of
Lamont, Florida. Known as "Seminole Family in Bronze", the statue shows what may have been a typical Seminole family around the time of the
Seminole Wars in the 1800s.
University Center
The University Center
Doak Campbell Stadium is a unique venue in collegiate football. It is contained within the brick facade walls of University Center, a vast complex that houses the offices of the University, the Registrar, School of Hospitality as well as numerous other offices and classrooms.
- The University Center A (East wing)
Building A houses the offices of the Registrar, Financial Aid, Admissions and Dean of Students. The Career Center is also located here until it is moved to the new Student Success Center. The Award Winning Film School is Located in the 2nd wing of Building A. The top two floors are home to Skyboxes
- The University Center B (South Wing)
Building B holds the Seminole Sportshop as well as Visitor Services. UCB is also home to the University Center Club and to the Osceola Sports Grill, the ultimate way to watch a Seminole Football game. The highly ranked Dedman School of Hospitality is located on the second floor of Building B.
- The University Center C (West Wing)
Building C is home to the College of Communication, Florida State Testing Center as well as the College of Social Work. The Athletics Ticket office is also located here as are many of the offices of Seminole Boosters. Floor nine is home to the Press Boxes with two floors of Skyboxes below.
- Moore Athletic Center (University Center D)
Located on the North Side of Doak Campbell, the athletic center houses nearly all of the athletic offices as well as some classrooms and lecture halls. Visitors are welcomed into the Great Hall showcasing the best of Seminole Athletics. The two National Championship Football trophies are on display for all to see.
References
- [1],Seminole Traditions on the Warchant