Schoellkopf Featured in "Wierdest Stadiums"

[TimV]

The Weirdest College Football Stadiums (D1 FCS) Starts at about 8:55.

Thread about missing West Stands now 2 years old Schoellkopf Field needs to be upgraded to Ivy Standards

[Ken711]

There was a long range plan Andy Noel mentioned back in 2017 to build new visitor stands on the west side, with weight rooms and training/locker rooms underneath.  Haven't heard anything since. It would make sense to utilize that space in front of the press box given space the limited space for athletic facilities elsewhere.

[wolcoma]

Unfortunately Schoellkopf Field has become a "recruiting liability".  Top Ivy League football talent plays in front of big high school crowds with stands on both sides.   The old West Stands were basically a set of high school bleachers so we're not talking big money to replace them.  I think when recruits visit and they see an ugly parking garage on the West side it turns them off.   A minor thing but we are the only Ivy with a one sided stadium.   GBR!

[scoop85]

Unfortunately Schoellkopf Field has become a "recruiting liability".  Top Ivy League football talent plays in front of big high school crowds with stands on both sides.   The old West Stands were basically a set of high school bleachers so we're not talking big money to replace them.  I think when recruits visit and they see an ugly parking garage on the West side it turns them off.   A minor thing but we are the only Ivy with a one sided stadium.   GBR!

Whether it's here or on the Ivy Sports Forum you've been complaining about this situation for years. While it's not an ideal situation, I doubt most recruits care about it in the least.

[BearLover]

Building additional seating in a stadium that is 5% full on game day is certainly one approach to revitalize the football program.

[dag14]

Building additional seating in a stadium that is 5% full on game day is certainly one approach to revitalize the football program.

+1

[stereax]

Building additional seating in a stadium that is 5% full on game day is certainly one approach to revitalize the football program.

+1

+2. They just sent me an email about buy one get one in the Terrace seating (standing?). Because I'm about to drop $65 to drag a friend to graze at hors d'oeuvres while watching us get our asses beat.

[billhoward]

The West Stands were fabulous. Okay, that was fifty years ago, and it reminds me: Saying "you shoulda seen the '70s" to current students is like a Class of '25 (1925) grad telling me (Class of '74) in the Vietnam / 29-0 / Marinaro /first lax championship era how cool it was wearing raccoon coats (and celebrating national football championships) and drinking Bees Knees (gin, honey syrup, lemon juice) in the Crescent. The West Stands:

• • Held 4000 people.
  • Were enclosed, with steel under your feet and behind your legs, so they felt like real stands not what you had in HS. There started about 8 feet above ground level; you could see over the players; compare to Berman Field stands about half as high.
  • Were around 1947 to 2016, held mostly Cornell students, and were a suitable for launching plastic champagne corks between quarters.
  • Were useful at graduation when there are capacity issues.
  See this Cornell Daily Sun 2016 article on the demise of the West Stands: https://www.cornellsun.com/article/2016/03/west-schoellkopf-stands-torn-down-due-to-underuse-disrepair
  
  I have hopes that at some point Cornell moves the playing surface closer to the Crescent (remove the old running track no longer used for competitions) and builds in the space between the garage/press box and the field:
  
  • Maybe a grassy knoll like some schools have for lazing at the game, catching sun, etcetera.
  • Or better, a thin building slides in there, maybe for athletic administration, with an open but covered top level that holds 500 for, say, early season lacrosse, or sprint football. Thus making Teagle Hall available to be reconfigured with a 50-meter swimming pool.
  
  The terrace seating used for lacrosse late in the season was great for getting close to the action, taking photos up close, getting a beer or wine legally, or — this happened also — lets parents and boisterous alums yell at the refs up-close.

[George64]

Lightweight 8+ and 4+A both finished second to Harvard in 60th Head of the Charles Regatta. 

[The Rancor]

Quote from: billhoward on 10/19/2025, 12:08:24 PM
• Maybe a grassy knoll like some schools have for lazing at the game, catching sun, etcetera.
• Or better, a thin building slides in there, maybe for athletic administration, with an open but covered top level that holds 500 for, say, early season lacrosse, or sprint football. Thus making Teagle Hall available to be reconfigured with a 50-meter swimming pool.


The terrace seating used for lacrosse late in the season was great for getting close to the action, taking photos up close, getting a beer or wine legally, or — this happened also — lets parents and boisterous alums yell at the refs up-close.

I like this idea. Roof deck terrace would create premium 'club level' seating/standing and would give a nice view of the Crescent. It could also be configurable for mildly inclement weather with heaters and movable awnings.

[jtwcornell91]

The West Stands were fabulous. Okay, that was fifty years ago, and it reminds me: Saying "you shoulda seen the '70s" to current students is like a Class of '25 (1925) grad telling me (Class of '74) in the Vietnam / 29-0 / Marinaro /first lax championship era how cool it was wearing raccoon coats (and celebrating national football championships) and drinking Bees Knees (gin, honey syrup, lemon juice) in the Crescent. The West Stands:

• • Held 4000 people.
  • Were enclosed, with steel under your feet and behind your legs, so they felt like real stands not what you had in HS. There started about 8 feet above ground level; you could see over the players; compare to Berman Field stands about half as high.
  • Were around 1947 to 2016, held mostly Cornell students, and were a suitable for launching plastic champagne corks between quarters.
  • Were useful at graduation when there are capacity issues.
  See this Cornell Daily Sun 2016 article on the demise of the West Stands: https://www.cornellsun.com/article/2016/03/west-schoellkopf-stands-torn-down-due-to-underuse-disrepair
  
  I have hopes that at some point Cornell moves the playing surface closer to the Crescent (remove the old running track no longer used for competitions) and builds in the space between the garage/press box and the field:
  
  • Maybe a grassy knoll like some schools have for lazing at the game, catching sun, etcetera.
  • Or better, a thin building slides in there, maybe for athletic administration, with an open but covered top level that holds 500 for, say, early season lacrosse, or sprint football. Thus making Teagle Hall available to be reconfigured with a 50-meter swimming pool.
  
  The terrace seating used for lacrosse late in the season was great for getting close to the action, taking photos up close, getting a beer or wine legally, or — this happened also — lets parents and boisterous alums yell at the refs up-close.
  

It was all downhill after they built the Theory Center (Rhodes Hall) and blocked the views of the Valley from the Crescent (which I only sat in for Graduations and 4ths of July, but still...).[/list]

[RichH]

The West Stands were fabulous. Okay, that was fifty years ago, and it reminds me: Saying "you shoulda seen the '70s" to current students is like a Class of '25 (1925) grad telling me (Class of '74) in the Vietnam / 29-0 / Marinaro /first lax championship era how cool it was wearing raccoon coats (and celebrating national football championships) and drinking Bees Knees (gin, honey syrup, lemon juice) in the Crescent. The West Stands:

• • Held 4000 people.
  • Were enclosed, with steel under your feet and behind your legs, so they felt like real stands not what you had in HS. There started about 8 feet above ground level; you could see over the players; compare to Berman Field stands about half as high.
  • Were around 1947 to 2016, held mostly Cornell students, and were a suitable for launching plastic champagne corks between quarters.
  • Were useful at graduation when there are capacity issues.
  See this Cornell Daily Sun 2016 article on the demise of the West Stands: https://www.cornellsun.com/article/2016/03/west-schoellkopf-stands-torn-down-due-to-underuse-disrepair
  
  I have hopes that at some point Cornell moves the playing surface closer to the Crescent (remove the old running track no longer used for competitions) and builds in the space between the garage/press box and the field:
  
  • Maybe a grassy knoll like some schools have for lazing at the game, catching sun, etcetera.
  • Or better, a thin building slides in there, maybe for athletic administration, with an open but covered top level that holds 500 for, say, early season lacrosse, or sprint football. Thus making Teagle Hall available to be reconfigured with a 50-meter swimming pool.
  
  The terrace seating used for lacrosse late in the season was great for getting close to the action, taking photos up close, getting a beer or wine legally, or — this happened also — lets parents and boisterous alums yell at the refs up-close.
  

It was all downhill after they built the Theory Center (Rhodes Hall) and blocked the views of the Valley from the Crescent (which I only sat in for Graduations and 4ths of July, but still...).[/list]

That's a delightfully well-harbored grudge. Well done, and I'll bring it up in the next campus curmudgeon annual meeting.

[mike1960]

The West Stands were fabulous. Okay, that was fifty years ago, and it reminds me: Saying "you shoulda seen the '70s" to current students is like a Class of '25 (1925) grad telling me (Class of '74) in the Vietnam / 29-0 / Marinaro /first lax championship era how cool it was wearing raccoon coats (and celebrating national football championships) and drinking Bees Knees (gin, honey syrup, lemon juice) in the Crescent. The West Stands:

• • Held 4000 people.
  • Were enclosed, with steel under your feet and behind your legs, so they felt like real stands not what you had in HS. There started about 8 feet above ground level; you could see over the players; compare to Berman Field stands about half as high.
  • Were around 1947 to 2016, held mostly Cornell students, and were a suitable for launching plastic champagne corks between quarters.
  • Were useful at graduation when there are capacity issues.
  See this Cornell Daily Sun 2016 article on the demise of the West Stands: https://www.cornellsun.com/article/2016/03/west-schoellkopf-stands-torn-down-due-to-underuse-disrepair
  
  I have hopes that at some point Cornell moves the playing surface closer to the Crescent (remove the old running track no longer used for competitions) and builds in the space between the garage/press box and the field:
  
  • Maybe a grassy knoll like some schools have for lazing at the game, catching sun, etcetera.
  • Or better, a thin building slides in there, maybe for athletic administration, with an open but covered top level that holds 500 for, say, early season lacrosse, or sprint football. Thus making Teagle Hall available to be reconfigured with a 50-meter swimming pool.
  
  The terrace seating used for lacrosse late in the season was great for getting close to the action, taking photos up close, getting a beer or wine legally, or — this happened also — lets parents and boisterous alums yell at the refs up-close.
  

• It was all downhill after they built the Theory Center (Rhodes Hall) and blocked the views of the Valley from the Crescent (which I only sat in for Graduations and 4ths of July, but still...).

That's a delightfully well-harbored grudge. Well done, and I'll bring it up in the next campus curmudgeon annual meeting.

Is that by invitation or can anyone attend?

[RichH]

The West Stands were fabulous. Okay, that was fifty years ago, and it reminds me: Saying "you shoulda seen the '70s" to current students is like a Class of '25 (1925) grad telling me (Class of '74) in the Vietnam / 29-0 / Marinaro /first lax championship era how cool it was wearing raccoon coats (and celebrating national football championships) and drinking Bees Knees (gin, honey syrup, lemon juice) in the Crescent. The West Stands:

• • Held 4000 people.
  • Were enclosed, with steel under your feet and behind your legs, so they felt like real stands not what you had in HS. There started about 8 feet above ground level; you could see over the players; compare to Berman Field stands about half as high.
  • Were around 1947 to 2016, held mostly Cornell students, and were a suitable for launching plastic champagne corks between quarters.
  • Were useful at graduation when there are capacity issues.
  See this Cornell Daily Sun 2016 article on the demise of the West Stands: https://www.cornellsun.com/article/2016/03/west-schoellkopf-stands-torn-down-due-to-underuse-disrepair
  
  I have hopes that at some point Cornell moves the playing surface closer to the Crescent (remove the old running track no longer used for competitions) and builds in the space between the garage/press box and the field:
  
  • Maybe a grassy knoll like some schools have for lazing at the game, catching sun, etcetera.
  • Or better, a thin building slides in there, maybe for athletic administration, with an open but covered top level that holds 500 for, say, early season lacrosse, or sprint football. Thus making Teagle Hall available to be reconfigured with a 50-meter swimming pool.
  
  The terrace seating used for lacrosse late in the season was great for getting close to the action, taking photos up close, getting a beer or wine legally, or — this happened also — lets parents and boisterous alums yell at the refs up-close.
  

• It was all downhill after they built the Theory Center (Rhodes Hall) and blocked the views of the Valley from the Crescent (which I only sat in for Graduations and 4ths of July, but still...).

That's a delightfully well-harbored grudge. Well done, and I'll bring it up in the next campus curmudgeon annual meeting.

Is that by invitation or can anyone attend?

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