Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
by D Hackett
Title
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
Artist
D Hackett
Medium
Photograph - Digital
Description
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium by D Hackett
The name of the playing surface has remained "Florida Field" since the stadium's original construction in 1930. In 1989, the university renamed the stadium (but not the playing surface) in honor of citrus magnate Ben Hill Griffin, Jr., an alumnus and major benefactor of the university and its sports programs.
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at Florida Field (popularly known as "The Swamp") is the football stadium for the University of Florida and the home field of the university's Florida Gators football team. It is located on the university's Gainesville, Florida campus. The stadium was originally built in 1930, and has been regularly expanded, renovated and improved since then. Although it is the 12th largest college football stadium as measured by its official seating capacity of 88,548, attendance for the Gators' home football games regularly exceeds 90,000 people.
The facility acquired the nickname "The Swamp" in the early 1990s when, in describing Florida's home-field advantage, then-coach Steve Spurrier noted that ". . . a swamp is where Gators live. We feel comfortable there, but we hope our opponents feel tentative. A swamp is hot and sticky and can be dangerous. Only Gators get out alive." [5] The nickname quickly became popular and has been commonly used ever since. Ben Hill Griffin Stadium is located on the northern edge of the University of Florida campus near the center of Gainesville, Florida.
The playing surface of Florida Field has also changed over the years. It was natural grass until 1971, when Astroturf was installed and nicknamed "Doug's Rug" for then-coach Doug Dickey. The original artificial surface was replaced with an updated version in 1980, and it remained until 1990, when newly hired coach Steve Spurrier insisted that it be removed and replaced with natural grass to help prevent player injury. In June 2012, the playing surface was completely torn out down to the substrate to improve drainage and install a Bermuda grass hybrid developed with assistance from the University of Florida's agronomy department to better resist drought, disease, and damage.
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September 28th, 2015
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