The 13th SEC stadium in our stadium series is Sanford Stadium on the campus of the University of Georgia in Athens. Sanford stadium was named after Dr. Steadman Sanford, an English professor who arrived at the university in 1903. Sanford later served on the University’s athletics commission as a faculty representative and eventually became the University of Georgia president. One of Sanford’s acts as president was to moved the football venue at Herty Field to the center of campus in 1911. Naturally, the university decided to name the new stadium after Sanford.
During the stadium’s first few seasons, Sanford Stadium was not big enough for the large crowds that came to see the Bulldogs play teams like in-state rival Georgia Tech. In fact, most game between Georgia and Georgia Tech were played at Grant Field in Atlanta, home of the Yellow Jackets. In 1927, Georgia saw their undefeated season come to an end in Atlanta with a 12-0 loss to Tech. After the loss, Sanford said that Georgia would “build a stadium bigger than Tech.” To fund a major renovation to the stadium named in his honor, Sanford had the athletic association sign notes that guaranteed bank loans to build the stadium. In return, the guarantors were granted seats to every home game. Prior to the 1928 season a $150,000 loan allowed construction to begin on Sanford Stadium. TC Atwood was the architect chosen to complete the stadium. Atwood also designed the University of North Carolina’s Kenan Stadium. Using convict labor, the new 30,000 seat Sanford Stadium was completed in time for the 1929 season. Georgia’s first ever opponent at their newly constructed venue were the Yale Bulldogs, who were also playing their first game south of the Mason-Dixon line. In that stadium dedication game, Georgia shutout Yale, 15-0. One of the most iconic and unique characteristics that were added in 1929 at Sanford Stadium, are the hedges that circle the field. The hedges idea came from Charlie Martin, a member of the University of Georgia Athletic Department. He drew his inspiration of adding the hedges from a visit to the Rose Bowl stadium in Pasadena, California. In 1940, lights were added to the stadium in time for Georgia’s first ever night game at Sanford Stadium, a 7-7 tie vs SEC foe Kentucky. The first major renovation since the stadium’s opening in 1929 came exactly 20 years later in 1949. 6,000 additional seats were added on the south stands, making the total capacity 36,000. Upon the arrival of head coach Vince Dooley in 1964, Sanford Stadium underwent more renovations to keep up with the rest of the SEC. Over 7,000 seats were added in the end zone and in 1967 nearly 20,000 new seats and a press box brought capacity to 59,000. In 1981, the east end zone was enclosed and nearly 10 seasons later the west end zone was enclosed as well. By the 1991 season, Sanford Stadium’s capacity exceeded 82,000. The final major renovation came in 2003 and 2004 when an upper deck was added to the north side of the stadium, allowing Sanford Stadium to hold over 92,000 spectators. During the 1996 Summer Olympics in nearby Atlanta, Olympic soccer matches were held inside Sanford Stadium, where the United States’ men and women’s teams won the gold medal. Notable games ‘Between the Hedges’
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