 Soccer game in 2014 | |
 | |
| Full name | Charles C. Hughes Stadium |
|---|---|
| Former names | Sacramento Stadium (1928–1944) |
| Location | Sacramento, CA,U.S. |
| Coordinates | 38°32′28″N121°29′11″W / 38.541°N 121.48652°W /38.541; -121.48652 |
| Elevation | 20 feet (6 m)AMSL |
| Owner | Sacramento City College |
| Type | Stadium |
| Capacity | 20,311[1] |
| Surface | Natural grass (1928–2012) Artificial turf (2012–present) |
| Current use | Football |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1928; 97 years ago (1928) |
| Renovated | 2012 |
| Tenants | |
List
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| Website | |
| scc.losrios.edu/hughes-stadium | |
Charles C. Hughes Stadium (commonly referred to asHughes Stadium) is an outdoor stadium in theWestern United States, located atSacramento City College inSacramento, California. The stadium opened in 1928 and was initially known as "Sacramento Stadium" and "Sacramento College Stadium".[2] It was renamed in November 1944 in honor of Charles Colfax Hughes, the first superintendent of theSacramento City Unified School District, who died a month earlier.[3][4]
In 2012, the stadium underwent a major overhaul, installing anartificial turf field surface, a new track surface, and a major refurbishment of the facilitiesdocumented in this video. Its presentseating capacityis 20,311.
Hughes Stadium is located on the eastern portion of the Sacramento City College campus. TheUnion Pacific (exWestern Pacific) railroad tracks are to the east and Sutterville Road is to the south; its bridge over the tracks is visible from the western seats. TheCity College station ofSacramento Regional Transit District's Blue Line is to the northeast, and the stadium's parking lots are to the northwest and northeast.
Thefootball field has a near north–south alignment, but slightly northwest-southeast. The open end of the U-shaped grandstand is to the south, with the scoreboard. Theelevation of the field is approximately twenty feet (6 m) abovesea level.
FormerWorld League of American Football football team theSacramento Surge, the only American team to ever win theWorld Bowl, played its inaugural season at Hughes Stadium in 1991, before relocating toHornet Stadium on theSacramento State University campus in 1992.[5] The Sacramento Surge played five home games at Hughes Stadium, with ticket prices ranging from $40 to $100.[6]
The Sacramento Surge, which played in theWorld League of American Football (WLAF) in 1991 and 1992, featured many notable football stars. The team was coached byKay Stephenson,[7] formerBuffalo Bills quarterback and head coach, withCharlie Sumner as the defensive coordinator andJim Haslett as the defensive assistant coach.Mike Keller served as General Manager,[8] while Special Projects was led byJack Youngblood, who also partnered with Joe Starkey andRonnie Lott on the Surge radio broadcastsKRAK. Future professional wrestlerBill Goldberg also played for the team.[5]
In 1992, the Surge played in theWorld Bowl. The Surge won the game, 21–17, behind quarterbackDavid Archer's MVP performance (22 completions of 33 attempts for 286 yards, two touchdowns and one interception). The game would be the only World Bowl involving two North American-based WLAF teams, as well as the only World Bowl played on North American soil.
The Surge was owned byFred Anderson, who, upon the WLAF going on hiatus after the 1992 season, continued Sacramento's professional football presence by forming theSacramento Gold Miners, which played in theCanadian Football League for three years, albeit at Hornet Stadium.
Hughes Stadium hosted sixteencollege football bowl games known as theCamellia Bowl between 1961 and 1980. The first three games were for theNAIA national football championship. The 1964–72 games were one of four regional bowls that led up to a poll to determine theNCAA College Division championship, prior to the currentDivision II playoff structure, initiated in 1973. It was also the site of the thirdDivision I-AA championship game in1980, in whichBoise State defeated defending championEastern Kentucky with a late touchdown in the fog onDecember 20.[9][10]
TheSacramento Capitols of theContinental Football League used Hughes Stadium as their home field in 1968 and 1969, before the league folded.[11]
ThoughSacramento State andUC Davis traditionally switched stadiums for the annualCauseway Classic football game, Hughes Stadium was used as a third-party venue for several games in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and last in 2002. It was the host of the famous "mud bowl" in 2000, where wind and rain was so strong that a UC Davis punt actually flew backwards during the game.
For many years the "Pig Bowl" was played at Hughes Stadium, an annual football game between police officers. The teams were composed of the Sacramento City Police Officers and the Sacramento County Sheriff's Deputies, and these games were mostly played in the 1970s.
During the 2012 season, theSacramento Mountain Lions of theUnited Football League used Hughes Stadium as their practice facility.[12]
TheSacramento Solons, aTriple-AMinor League Baseball team affiliated with theMilwaukee Brewers playedthree seasons in Hughes Stadium from 1974 to 1976. In 1976, the Solons' affiliation changed to theTexas Rangers. As a football and track stadium, the field was expectedly unsuitable for baseball, with a left field foul line reportedly at just 233 feet (71 m), or 17 feet shorter than the minimum requirement of 250 feet (76 m), but baseballs hit over the high screen were still counted as home runs.This photo, though somewhat exaggerated due to the zoom lens, provides a sense of the closeness of the left field area.
Hughes Stadium was the site of theAAU National Championships in1968; on the evening of June 20,Jim Hines,Ronnie Ray Smith, andCharlie Greene all bettered theworld record (hand timed) of ten seconds in the100 metres (and several others were veryclose),[13][14][15] and is famous amongst track and field historians as the"Night of Speed."[16][17][18] It was also host to the 1995NCAA Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championships as well as several other championship events. The stadium was the host of most long-distance races at the 2011World Masters Athletics Championships .[19]
Hughes Stadium was one of the regular sites that would host theCalifornia Interscholastic Federation State Track and Field Championships on a rotational basis. The meet was held on ten different occasions from 1979 to 2007. (1979, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2007)[20]
On September 9, 1978,Pete Ranzany fought for the world (WBA)welterweight title against championJosé "Pipino" Cuevas. A crowd of over 17,000 saw Cuevas knock out Ranzany in thesecond round.[21]
Hughes Stadium's track has been used forMidget car racing.Hughes Stadium's legacy began more than 80 years ago | Valley Community Newspapers, Inc.Hughes Stadium's track has been used for Speedway Motorcycle Races 1957/58
The expansionUSL Pro soccer clubSacramento Republic FC played the first few home games of 2014 at Hughes Stadium, where their per-game attendance dwarfed that of the rest of the league, and where they recorded three sellouts.[22] The team left Hughes in June 2014 forBonney Field, a newly built facility in Cal Expo with a full-sized soccer field and lower capacity.
The Sacramento Pop Festival was held at Hughes in 1967 on Sunday, October 15, headlined byJefferson Airplane,Nitty Gritty Dirt Band,Strawberry Alarm Clock, andThe Sunshine Company.[23] It was held four months after theMonterey Pop Festival.
In 1988, Hughes Stadium was the venue forPink Floyd during theirMomentary Lapse of Reason tour, with a sold-out crowd of 27,000 on April 20.
On August 16, 1981, 21,041 fans attended the "Rockin' the Capital" concert, according to Billboard Magazine.The Doobie Brothers headlined the concert and were joined bySantana,Rick Springfield,Gamma and Ranger.
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| Preceded by | Host of theNCAA Div. I football championship 1980 | Succeeded by |
