Phillips Field was a medium-sized stadium (maximum capacity approximately 20,000) located on the west bank of the Hillsborough River across from downtown Tampa, immediately adjacent to the

University of Tampa The University of Tampa (UT) is a private university in Tampa, Florida. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. UT offers more than 200 programs of study, including 22 master's degrees and a broad variety of majors, ...

. It opened on October 4, 1937, and served as the home for the University of Tampa's football team from 1937 to 1967. The facility was named for local businessman I. W. Phillips, who donated the land to the school so that the Spartans would not have to share nearby Plant Field, which was often unavailable due to its use for many different sports and community events. Besides "Tampa U" home games, Phillips Field hosted many other sporting events. It was the home football field for Middleton High School and Blake High School, two segregated schools that ended the season with a rivalry game at the field. Hillsborough High School and Plant High School also played their annual rivalry at the site. Phillips Field was the site of the

Cigar Bowl The Cigar Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game held in Tampa, Florida, featuring small college teams. The nine editions of the bowl were held from January 1947 (following the 1946 season) through December 1954 (following the 1954 se ...

, the area's first college

bowl game In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivi ...

, from 1946 to 1954, and the

Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as th ...

scheduled several home games at the facility during the 1930s and 1940s. Phillips Field was also the site of several

NFL preseason The National Football League preseason is the period each year during which NFL teams play several not-for-the-record exhibition games before the actual "regular" season starts. Beginning with the featured Pro Football Hall of Fame game in early ...

contests in the mid-1960s that helped Tampa earn an eventual expansion franchise. The field was also the site of stock car races, large boxing matches, and other community and sporting events. When

Tampa Stadium Tampa Stadium (nicknamed The Big Sombrero and briefly known as Houlihan's Stadium) was a large open-air stadium (maximum capacity about 74,000) located in Tampa, Florida, which opened in 1967 and was significantly expanded in 1974–75. The faci ...

was completed in 1967, the city of Tampa gave Plant Field to the University of Tampa, and Phillips Field fell into disuse. It was razed in the early 1970s, and Tampa Preparatory School and Julian Lane Riverfront Park were built at its former location.

References

{{coord missing, Florida College football venues Tampa Spartans football 1950s in Florida 1940s in Florida History of Tampa, Florida Demolished sports venues in Florida 1937 establishments in Florida Sports venues completed in 1937 Defunct American football venues in the United States American football venues in Florida