Gerald J. Ford Stadium is a

stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

. The stadium is owned by

Southern Methodist University Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...

(SMU) and is used primarily for games played by the

SMU Mustangs football The SMU Mustangs football team is a college football team representing Southern Methodist University (SMU) in University Park, Texas, University Park, Dallas County, Texas. The Mustangs compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, NC ...

team.

About Gerald J. Ford Stadium

The stadium is named after Gerald J. Ford, a billionaire banker who provided most of the funding for its construction. Outside the northeast corner of the stadium is

Doak Walker Ewell Doak Walker II (January 1, 1927 – September 27, 1998) was an American football player who was a halfback and kicker. He played college football for the SMU Mustangs, winning the Maxwell Award in 1947 and the Heisman Trophy in 1948. H ...

Plaza, honoring the former

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy ( ; also known simply as the Heisman) is awarded annually since 1935 to the top player in college football. It is considered the most prestigious award in the sport and is presented by the Heisman Trophy Trust followin ...

winner and SMU's greatest football star. The plaza includes a life-sized replica of the

Doak Walker Award The Doak Walker Award honors the top running back in college football in the United States. Established in 1990, it is named in honor of Doak Walker, a former running back who played for the SMU Mustangs from 1945 to 1949 and in the National Foot ...

trophy, awarded annually to the nation's top

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

. The northwest corner is connected to the Loyd All-Sports Center, which contains locker, training, and office space for SMU Athletics.

History

The building stands on the site of the former

Ownby Stadium Ownby Stadium was a stadium in the University Park, Texas, University Park suburb of Dallas, Texas. It was the home of the SMU Mustangs football, Southern Methodist University Mustang football team. In late 1998, the stadium was demolished to b ...

, the school's previous on-campus football stadium that had been used since 1926. Ownby was demolished starting in late October 1998 in order to clear the land designated for the new stadium. Ford Stadium opened on September 2, 2000, with a football game against the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

. On September 24, 2022, the regular season attendance record was set at Gerald J. Ford Stadium when 35,481 people watched the

TCU Horned Frogs The TCU Horned Frogs are the athletic teams that represent Texas Christian University. The 18 varsity teams participate in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA Division I and in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for football, competi ...

face off against the

SMU Mustangs The SMU Mustangs are the sport, athletic teams that represent Southern Methodist University in University Park, Texas, United States. SMU was founded in 1911 and joined the Southwest Conference, competing against Baylor Bears, Baylor, Rice Owls, ...

in the Battle for the Iron Skillet. The overall attendance record is set at 36,742 for the 2010 Armed Forces Bowl between SMU and the

Army Black Knights The Army Black Knights are the athletic teams that represent the United States Military Academy, located in West Point, New York. The Black Knights compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a non-footb ...

Expansion

The north-south oriented stadium was bowl-shaped, originally standing on three sides (west, east, and north). The stadium was theoretically expandable to 45,000 seats by enclosing the horseshoe on the south end.

Renovations

In 2012, SMU Mustang Athletics announced the construction of additional luxury suites, as well as the upgrading of infrastructure to the Paul B. Loyd, Jr. All-Sports Center to allow access to designated outdoor seating areas in the stadium. Construction was completed prior to the start of the 2013 season. On July 26, 2016, SMU officials announced plans for an upcoming facilities project that will include a new indoor performance center for the Mustangs football team, as well as an outdoor natural grass football practice field. The additions are part of the initial phase of SMU's $150 million comprehensive facilities upgrade. On December 2, 2022, SMU broke ground on the Garry Weber Endzone Complex, a new, $100 million dollar state-of-the-art facility for the school's football team. The complex, named after Garry Weber, an accomplished entrepreneur, investor, philanthropist and former SMU football player, will include a new weight room, training facilities, meeting rooms, and offices for the football program. The complex was expected to be completed in time for the start of 2024 football season, and the expansion was completed and dedicated on September 6, 2024.

Attendance records

Gallery

SMU's Ford Stadium Press from Opposite Side of Stadium.JPG, Home side, 2016 SMU's Ford Stadium, Wide Shot.JPG, Wide shot, 2016 View of Gerald J Ford Stadium after renovations, 20224.jpg, New end zone, 2024

References

External links

* {{Texas college football venues Ford Sports venues in Dallas American football venues in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex High school football venues in Texas 2000 establishments in Texas Sports venues completed in 2000