 | |
| Location | University of California Berkeley, California, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 37°52′11″N122°15′25″W / 37.8697°N 122.257°W /37.8697; -122.257 |
| Owner | University of California |
| Capacity | 25,000 (estimated) |
| Opened | 1904; 121 years ago (1904) |
| Closed | 1922; 103 years ago (1922) |
California Field was an outdoorcollege football stadium on the campus of theUniversity of California inBerkeley. It served as the home field for theCalifornia Golden Bears from1904 through1922.
California Field opened its doors in 1904 to replace the antiquatedWest Field and the boosted capacity allowed California to host important games for the first time. Before California Field opened, the Bears had played important games (namely theBig Game) at neutral site venues inSan Francisco, and with a new over 20,000-seat stadium California was able to host the first Big Game played outside San Francisco.[n 1]
The new stadium was located much closer to the center of campus (whereHearst Gymnasium now stands) and was able to draw unprecedented crowds for the time. California Field is also notable because it is where many of California's longstanding traditions began to take form. In 1910, the firstcard stunt was performed at the Big Game and after victories, the students would "serpentine" around the field—something that is mentioned in the song "Big C".
California Field is also where the Golden Bears gained national prominence under head coachAndrew Latham Smith. Four of the Bears' five consecutive undefeated seasons were played at California Field; the stadium was home to three of California's four straight (claimed)national championships. Because of this success, California needed an even larger venue to host its football team; therefore, the team and its fans began pushing for a new stadium.[2] Work on theCalifornia Memorial Stadium began in January1923.
The stadium also hosted the first ever international rugby matches played by theUnited States national rugby team:United States v. Australia in 1912 andUnited States v. New Zealand in 1913, both matches drawing 10,000 fans.[3]
After the1905 season, California did not have a football team for the nine autumns (1906–1914), but continued withrugby; football returned in1915.
The approximateelevation of California Field was three hundred feet (90 m) abovesea level.
