Stoll Field/McLean Stadium

Stoll Field/McLean Stadium
Map
Former namesStoll Field (1916–1923)
Location202 Avenue of Champions
Lexington, KY 40506
Coordinates38°02′19″N 84°30′08″W / 38.03861°N 84.50222°W / 38.03861; -84.50222
OwnerUniversity of Kentucky
OperatorUniversity of Kentucky
Capacity37,000 (1972)
OpenedOctober 14, 1916
ClosedNovember 1972
Tenants
Kentucky Wildcats football (1916–1972)

Stoll Field/McLean Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It was the home of the University of Kentucky Wildcats football team. The field has been in use since 1880, but the concrete stands were opened in October 1916, and closed following the 1972 season. The stadium was replaced by Kroger Field, which opened in 1973 as Commonwealth Stadium. Memorial Coliseum is located across the street from the site.

The stadium was a two-sided concrete structure, with bleachers in both endzones. It was named for Judge Richard C. Stoll, a prominent alumnus. In November 1924, the grandstands were renamed McLean Stadium in honor of Price Innes McLean, a former center for the Wildcats who had died from injuries sustained in the 1923 Kentucky-Cincinnati game.

The stadium was the home of the Wildcats during the Bear Bryant era (1946–1953), which included the team's first bowl appearance (in the 1947 Great Lakes Bowl), and their first Southeastern Conference (SEC) football championship (in 1950). Bryant's coaching tenure at the predominantly basketball-savvy school is regarded as the best era in UK's football history.