from the SNU athletics web site:
Southern Nazarene University’s Football Stadium was constructed and opened for use in the fall of 2001. The first game played in the new stadium was on November 3rd, 2001 in front of 2,500 fans. Artificial turf was laid before the beginning of the 2015 football season.
The Crimson Storm blanked Westminster College 36-0 in that game. The first ever touchdown in the new stadium came at the 8:55 mark of the first half when quarterback Andrew Linn connected with tight end Ransom Axtell from 5-yards out to put SNU up 7-0. The first rushing touchdown would come six minutes later when Jason Kilmer scored from 10-yards out to put the Crimson Storm up 14-0.
The SNU Football Stadium is located approximately two miles west of the main SNU campus on Northwest 50th Street, just west of Council Road in Bethany. The stadium, facility and practice fields sit on 16 acres of land.The first official complete season of play for the Crimson Storm at the stadium was in 2002. SNU football has become a wide attraction around the metropolitan area as the Crimson Storm has averaged around 1,800 fans per game throughout the inception of the football program.
Prior to the SNU football stadium being built, the Crimson Storm played their first season and a half of football at the historic Taft Stadium in downtown Oklahoma City. SNU would go 4-3 at Taft, gaining their first victory ever in football on the hollowed grounds of Taft on September 30th as they defeated Haskell Indian Nations, 24-3.
The 15,000 seat Taft Stadium was home to six local high schools in Oklahoma City in its prime and has hosted numerous high school and college games. Taft also used to be the home of midget and stock car races.
Facility Features
The SNU football stadium is a bowl built in the ground with the bleachers overlooking the brand new turf playing surface that was fully installed in the spring of 2015. The stadium features 2,500 seats with home and visiting designated seating. The SNU student section is located on the north side of the home bleachers. There is also a platformed section for a pep band.
Students and fans have also found a home on both endzones where the land slopes to form a hill overlooking both endzones. Fans can be seen laying out blankets and viewingthe action from the grassy slopes of the endzones. New trees have been planted in both endzones to provide the “between the hedges” look.
A new feature added for the 2003 season was a brand new press box located on the top of the west bleachers. The original press box stood on the west bleachers and had three rooms for press and game day operations workers. The new press box was built upon those existing rooms and features a total of eight rooms. On the bottom level is room for visiting media, scorekeepers, public address announcer, sound technician, and home stats. The upper level houses the Crimson Storm Broadcast Network, video room, and the home and visiting coaches. There are three phone lines available inside the press box for broadcasters and visiting media, along with wireless internet access.
Inside the football complex, there are two concession stands on both sides of the field as well as two ticket booths at both entry points into the stadium. The home concession stand houses all the concession needs for game day as well as providing storage and restrooms. The visiting concession stand provides further storage for equipment needs. Total square footage of the concession stands and restroom facilities is 2,000 square feet.
The football team is housed inside the state-of-the-art football fieldhouse. Inside the 15,600 square-foot facility, located just to the west of the stadium are offices for the entire football staff, a large conference room, a weight room, home and visiting locker rooms and a main office. A state-of-the-art training facility is also located inside the facility. The training facility provides athletic training needs for the football program.
Also inside the complex are two practice fields located on the south side of the main football field.
Quick Facts
Opened: November 3rd, 2001
Capacity: 2,500
Ticket Prices
$6 for adults, $4 for students, Free - children under 5
Football Fieldhouse Amenities:
• Weight Room
• Coaches Offices
• Home and Visiting Locker Rooms
• Equipment Room
• Athletic Training Facilities
• Meeting Rooms
• Office Area