L.T. Smith Stadium
Encyclopedia
Houchens Industries – L. T. Smith Stadium at Jimmy Feix Field is a 22,000-seat multi-purpose stadium
in Bowling Green, Kentucky
. It is home to the Western Kentucky University
Hilltoppers football
team
. The facility was expanded to a seating capacity
of 22,000 in a project that was completed in 2008. This was planned to prepare for the Hilltoppers' move to the highest level of NCAA
football competition, Division I FBS (formerly known as Division I-A), completed in 2009
. However, the facility remains one of the smallest stadiums in the FBS.
When the stadium was built in 1968 it seated 19,250 fans. A 1989 renovation reduced the seating capacity
to 17,500 seats. Lights were installed in 1987 and an Astroplay playing surface was installed in 2002.
Smith Stadium has been the site of marching band competitions, high school football games, the university's graduation
ceremonies and the Special Olympics. Starting in 2009, it became the site of Kentucky's high school football championship games
.
On July 19, 2007, WKU reported that Houchens Industries
, a long-time corporate supporter of WKU, made a $5 million commitment to an expansion and renovation project for the school’s football stadium. In honor of the gift, WKU added Houchens Industries to the name of L. T. Smith Stadium. Today, the stadium is now titled as Houchens Industries – L. T. Smith Stadium.
All-Time Largest Crowds
Multi-purpose stadium
Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of stadium designed in such a way as to be easily used by multiple sports. While any stadium could potentially host more than one sport, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy that stresses multi-functionality over specificity...
in Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green is the third-most populous city in the state of Kentucky after Louisville and Lexington, with a population of 58,067 as of the 2010 Census. It is the county seat of Warren County and the principal city of the Bowling Green, Kentucky Metropolitan Statistical Area with an estimated 2009...
. It is home to the Western Kentucky University
Western Kentucky University
Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky, USA. It was formally founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier....
Hilltoppers football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team
Team
A team comprises a group of people or animals linked in a common purpose. Teams are especially appropriate for conducting tasks that are high in complexity and have many interdependent subtasks.A group in itself does not necessarily constitute a team...
. The facility was expanded to a seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
of 22,000 in a project that was completed in 2008. This was planned to prepare for the Hilltoppers' move to the highest level of NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
football competition, Division I FBS (formerly known as Division I-A), completed in 2009
2009 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team
The 2009 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University during the 2009 college football season. The team's Head Coach was David Elson. WKU was formerly an Independent team in 2008, before their move to the Sun Belt Conference in 2009...
. However, the facility remains one of the smallest stadiums in the FBS.
When the stadium was built in 1968 it seated 19,250 fans. A 1989 renovation reduced the seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
to 17,500 seats. Lights were installed in 1987 and an Astroplay playing surface was installed in 2002.
Smith Stadium has been the site of marching band competitions, high school football games, the university's graduation
Graduation
Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the ceremony that is sometimes associated, where students become Graduates. Before the graduation, candidates are referred to as Graduands. The date of graduation is often called degree day. The graduation itself is also...
ceremonies and the Special Olympics. Starting in 2009, it became the site of Kentucky's high school football championship games
KHSAA Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl
The KHSAA Commonwealth Gridiron Bowl is a series of football games, typically held on the first weekend of December, that determine the high school champions of the U.S. state of Kentucky...
.
On July 19, 2007, WKU reported that Houchens Industries
Houchens Industries
Houchens Industries, is an American employee-owned company, in business since 1918 when it began as a small grocery operated by founder Ervin Houchens in rural Barren County, Kentucky. The company is headquartered in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The company runs about 425 grocery and convenience stores...
, a long-time corporate supporter of WKU, made a $5 million commitment to an expansion and renovation project for the school’s football stadium. In honor of the gift, WKU added Houchens Industries to the name of L. T. Smith Stadium. Today, the stadium is now titled as Houchens Industries – L. T. Smith Stadium.
Record crowds
The stadium officially holds 22,113 people. The record attendance for Houchens Industries – L. T. Smith Stadium is 22,297 when the Hilltoppers hosted rival Murray State on September 20, 2008 in the first game following major renovations that began prior to the 2007 season.All-Time Largest Crowds
- 22,297, vs. Murray State UniversityMurray State RacersMurray State University features 15 varsity sports teams. Both men's and women's teams are called the Racers, with the exception of the baseball team which is known as the Thoroughbreds. They participate in the NCAA's Division I, in the Ohio Valley Conference. Football competes the Football...
, Sept. 20, 2008
- 20,772, vs. Indiana UniversityIndiana HoosiersThe Indiana Hoosiers are the athletic teams for the Bloomington campus of Indiana University . Athletic teams sponsored by IU Bloomington include cross country, track, baseball, golf, tennis, rowing, volleyball, soccer, football and basketball...
, Sept. 18, 2010
- 20,568, vs. University of South FloridaSouth Florida BullsThe South Florida Bulls are the athletic teams for the University of South Florida. The university competes in NCAA Division I, USF is a member of the Big East Conference, and has been since 2005...
, Sept. 12, 2009
- 20,428, vs. Eastern Kentucky UniversityEastern Kentucky ColonelsEKU fields teams in 15 varsity sports . The school is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference in Division I of the NCAA , having been a part of the conference since its inception in 1948...
, Oct. 26, 1968
- 20,100, vs. Middle Tennessee State UniversityMiddle Tennessee Blue RaidersThe Blue Raiders are the men's and women's athletic teams at Middle Tennessee State University. MTSU athletic teams participate in NCAA Division I in the Sun Belt Conference...
, Nov. 8, 1980
- 20,100, vs. Morehead State UniversityMorehead State UniversityMorehead State University is a public, co-educational university located in Morehead, Kentucky, United States in the foothills of the Daniel Boone National Forest in Rowan County, midway between Lexington, Kentucky, and Huntington, West Virginia. The 2012 edition of "America's Best Colleges" by U.S...
, Nov. 1, 1975
- 20,000, vs. Middle Tennessee State UniversityMiddle Tennessee Blue RaidersThe Blue Raiders are the men's and women's athletic teams at Middle Tennessee State University. MTSU athletic teams participate in NCAA Division I in the Sun Belt Conference...
, Nov. 13, 1976
- 20,000, vs. University of DaytonDayton FlyersThe Dayton Flyers are the University of Dayton's intercollegiate athletic teams, which are based in Dayton, Ohio. The Flyers' home arena is the University of Dayton Arena. The name is a reference and homage to Daytonians Orville and Wilbur Wright who pioneered heavier than air flight...
, Nov. 12, 1974
- 20,000, vs. Middle Tennessee State UniversityMiddle Tennessee Blue RaidersThe Blue Raiders are the men's and women's athletic teams at Middle Tennessee State University. MTSU athletic teams participate in NCAA Division I in the Sun Belt Conference...
, Nov. 4, 1972
- 19,926, vs. Tennessee Technological UniversityTennessee Technological UniversityTennessee Technological University, popularly known as Tennessee Tech, is an accredited public university located in Cookeville, Tennessee, US, a city approximately seventy miles east of Nashville. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute , and before that as Dixie College, the...
, Oct. 16, 1971
- 19,800, vs. Morehead State UniversityMorehead State UniversityMorehead State University is a public, co-educational university located in Morehead, Kentucky, United States in the foothills of the Daniel Boone National Forest in Rowan County, midway between Lexington, Kentucky, and Huntington, West Virginia. The 2012 edition of "America's Best Colleges" by U.S...
, Oct. 27, 1979