University of Connecticut Athletics
A Farewell To Memorial Stadium
5/16/2012 12:00:00 AM | Football
Photo Gallery May 16, 2012
STORRS, Conn. -- Memorial Stadium on the University of Connecticut campus was the home of the UConn football team from its dedication in 1953 until its final game in 2002 as play began at Rentschler Field. For the past ten years, Memorial Stadium has stayed dormant but now will be demolished and on its site will be the new UConn Basketball Development Center.
On Saturday, former UConn players and coaches gathered to have one last event at Memorial Stadium and also tour The Burton Family Football Complex and the Mark R. Shenkman Training Center. Please enjoy the extensive photo gallery above for a review of the day.
And how many of these facts did you know about Memorial Stadium?
Year Opened-1953
First Home Game-beat St. Lawrence 26-6 on October 10, 1953
Year Closed-2002
Last Home Game-beat Kent State 63-21 on Nov. 9, 2002
Capacity-16,200
Surface-Grass
Overall Record in Memorial Stadium-50 Seasons-238 Games-Won 131, Lost 103, Tied 4
Unbeaten/Untied Seasons at Home in Memorial Stadium-1959 (4-0), 1964 (4-0), 1986 (5-0), 1989 (5-0)
UCONN HEAD COACHES--50 YEARS OF FOOTBALL IN MEMORIAL STADIUM
1953-1963--Bob Ingalls
1964-1965--Rick Forzano
1966-1970--John Toner
1971-1972--Bob Casciola
1973-1976--Larry Naviaux
1977-1982--Walt Nadzak
1983-1993--Tom Jackson
1994-1998--Skip Holtz
1999-2002--Randy Edsall
YANKEE CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP TEAMS IN MEMORIAL STADIUM
1956- Champion
1957-Co-Champion with Rhode Island
1958-Champion
1959-Champion
1960-Champion
1968-Co-Champion with New Hampshire
1970-Champion
1971-Co-Champion with Massachusetts
1973-Champion
1982-Quad-Champion with BU, Maine, Massachusetts
1983-Co-Champion with BU
1986-Tri-Champion with Delaware, Massachusetts
1989-Tri-Champion with Delaware, New Hampshire
1998 NCAA DIVISION I-AA PLAYOFFS Beat Hampton 42-34 on November 28, 1998
DID YOU KNOW????----THE MEMORIAL STADIUM HALF CENTURY
Memorial Stadium was named to honor all U.S. veterans and was the second home of the football team, after Dow Field. The first UConn football game in Memorial Stadium (Oct. 10, 1953 vs. St. Lawrence) also marked the first appearance at a home football game for the University of Connecticut Marching Band.
UConn football, under head coach Bob Ingalls, won five consecutive Yankee Conference Championships from 1956-60, compiling a 17-1-2 record in league play during that five-year span.
In 1959, Memorial Stadium in Storrs served as the host site for the first-ever NCAA Division I Men's Soccer "Final Four". The national semifinals were played in Memorial Stadium but the national championship game had to be moved to Gardner Dow Field on the UConn campus after heavy rains made Memorial Stadium unplayable.
During a seven-year span from 1967-73, Connecticut Football won four Yankee Conference Championships, compiling an impressive 28-6-3 record in league play during that period.
Twice during the 50 years of games in Memorial Stadium, a UConn player was tackled by a non-playing opponent. In a 1961 game against Buffalo, Sean Sgrulleta was in the middle of a long run and was tackled by a player that came off the Buffalo bench. In 1984, in a game against Morgan State, Husky kickoff return man Gregg Morrison broke free and headed up the sidelines toward the end zone. The only person in his way became Morgan State assistant coach Darrell Coulter who came off the bench to tackle Morrison. A touchdown was awarded and the highlight was shown on television stations nationally.
In November of 1981 Memorial Stadium became an important part of NCAA history when the University of Connecticut hosted the first-ever NCAA Division I Women's Field Hockey "Final Four". UConn, under head coach Diane Wright, would win the 1981 NCAA Field Hockey National Championship in Memorial Stadium. That was the first NCAA national title (men or women) won in Connecticut Athletics history and was also the first Division I women's national championship for any school in any sport earned under the NCAA banner (which brought women's athletics into the NCAA family in 1981-82).
In 1983, linebackers John Dorsey and Vernon Hargreaves became the first UConn Football teammates to earn All-America honors in the same season. The duo combined for more than 300 tackles and led the Huskies to a share of the Yankee Conference title.
On September 23, 1989, UConn Football played its first night game at Memorial Stadium, beating New Hampshire 20-10.
In 1990, quarterback Matt DeGennaro finished his UConn Football career as the leading passer in the history of the Yankee Conference, totaling 9,269 yards in total offense with 73 touchdown passes.
In 1998, UConn celebrated its 100th season of college football with a school-record 10 wins and advanced to the NCAA I-AA playoffs for the first time. The Huskies beat Hampton 42-34 in the only postseason football game in the stadium to advance to the national quarterfinals and finished the year ranked No. 7 in the final I-AA rankings.
In 2000, UConn began play as a Division I-A Independent and set a single-season record for average home attendance (14,166).
For several years, Memorial Stadium was also the home for the annual UConn Spring Weekend Concert. Performers such as Cheap Trick, Joan Jett, 10,000 Maniacs and Stevie Ray Vaughn played in our campus football stadium. Memorial Stadium also was the home for numerous high school state championship football games, the State of Connecticut Special Olympics, and several UConn graduation ceremonies.
UConn broght the curtain down on its 50-year run at Memorial Stadium on November 9, 2002 with a 63-21 victory over Kent State.
