David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium: A Legacy of Football and Remembrance
The David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium is more than just a venue for college football; it's a symbol of the University of Kansas's rich history, athletic tradition, and commitment to honoring its fallen heroes. From its humble beginnings as McCook Field to its modern transformation as part of the Gateway District, the stadium has evolved alongside the university and the sport itself.
Early Years and Construction (1890-1922)
The Kansas Jayhawks football program, one of the oldest in college football, began in 1890. The program's first season was 1890, making it one of the oldest college football programs. Early games were played at McCook Field, a simple 12-acre plot acquired in 1889. The first football game at McCook Field was played Oct.
By 1920, the facilities were rundown and inadequate, and Director of Athletics Forrest C. “Phog” Allen toured several other universities to gather ideas for a new facility. This coincided with the desire for a building or other facility to honor the 130 members of the university community who died in World War I. The Million Dollar Drive fund-raising campaign began Nov. 18, 1920, just after KU’s football team - coached by Allen for this one year - came from behind to tie Nebraska 20-20. Invigorated by this amazing feat, students and others donated nearly $225,000 within a few weeks, and plans were made for a stadium, a student union and a statue commemorating “Uncle Jimmy” Green, the longtime law school dean who had died in 1919.
Allen liked the horseshoe-shaped stands, football field and track at Princeton University, and LaForce Bailey, professor of architecture, and Clement C. On May 10, 1921, about 4,000 male students and faculty tore down the rickety McCook stands and fence, and Chancellor E.H. Lindley broke ground for the new field, which ran north-south. Dedicated on November 11, 1922, as a memorial to the 129 students and alumni who died in World War I, the stadium became the University’s first major war memorial. KU's memorial listings included 127 men and two women who died in World War I. David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium is one of several war memorials on the University of Kansas campus, including the Vietnam War Memorial, Korean War Memorial, World War II Memorial Carillon and Campanile, Victory Eagle, and Kansas Memorial Union. On Friday, August 29th, the renovated David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium was rededicated as one of Kansas’ six war memorials.
Expansion and Renovations (1923-2014)
Over the years, David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium has undergone several expansions and renovations to improve the fan experience and modernize the facilities. In April 1923, the first Kansas Relays, an invitational track and field event, were held. Two seating sections were added to the original six in 1925, and in 1927 the “horseshoe” on the north end was added, covering the site of McCook Field and making the capacity 35,000. Large spaces underneath the stands were used to house students immediately after World War II and later as art studios. In the 1960s additions to the stands raised the seating capacity to 51,500. In 1969 the track was named for Jim Hershberger, a track star, 1953 alumnus and university donor who is a member of the KU Athletic Hall of Fame. He donated $125,000 to replace the original cinders with an artificial surface. In 1970 artificial turf replaced the original grass field.
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A significant renovation project began in 1997, costing $26 million and funded largely by ticket surcharges. This included a new concourse, concession stands and restrooms; permanent light standards; new home locker room; new press box and media facilities; 36 suites; new elevators; and a video board. Until 2014, Memorial Stadium was one of the few football stadiums in Division I that had a track encircling the field. The track was removed in 2014, as the university's newly built Rock Chalk Park sports complex opened for use by the school's outdoor track and field team.
The Anderson Family Football Complex and the Kivisto Field (2006-2008)
In August 2008 the $31-million Anderson Family Football Complex opened adjacent to the stadium. In 2006, coinciding with groundbreaking for the new complex, the stadium playing field was named in honor of prominent donor Tom Kivisto of Tulsa, Okla. This project has provided and will continue to provide a profound impact to student-athletes through much-needed upgrades to Kansas Football facilities. The renovations to the Anderson Family Football Complex houses a brand new, state-of-the-art locker room and weight room.
The Gateway District and David Booth's Transformative Gift
In November 2023, development began on the KU Gateway District, a multiphase project that is redefining the northern entrance to KU’s Lawrence campus. Phase 2 of the Gateway District project will include the development of new retail, dining, parking, residential, and hotel facilities.
This project has provided and will continue to provide a profound impact to student-athletes through much-needed upgrades to Kansas Football facilities. The renovations to the Anderson Family Football Complex houses a brand new, state-of-the-art locker room and weight room. The upgrades to David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium has enhanced the fan experience through new amenities, seating options, and modernization of the full gameday experience, bringing more fans to the stadium on gamedays. Fans are now closer to the field of play with elevated sightlines creating the ability to impact and amplify the home-field advantage and level of support for the athletes.
Kansas received a $300 million gift from donor David Booth, the largest in school history and believed to be among the richest in the history of college sports. Booth, a graduate of Lawrence High School and KU, already has his name on the football stadium. Kansas was expected to allocate $75 million toward the next phase of the renovation of the David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium and additional construction of the surrounding area, called the Gateway District. Kansas athletic director Travis Goff said the remainder of the gift was expected to generate a stream of income for the athletic department that could last for generations.
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"There is no more generous and impactful Jayhawk, and we are so fortunate to call him a friend and mentor," Goff said. The Gateway District’s next phase was expected to add a hotel, additional retail and restaurant spaces, student housing, improved parking and an outdoor event plaza. Booth is founder of global investment firm Dimensional Fund Advisors, which managed $853 billion in assets as of June 30. The longtime benefactor made a $50 million pledge in 2017 to help with the overhaul of the football stadium, which at the time was the largest donation in KU history. He has given several other financial gifts to the university, including $4.3 million to buy and donate James Naismith’s original rules of basketball.
"KU and Lawrence are a big part of my story, and it means a lot to support the community that invested in me," Booth said. "Philanthropy, like investing, pays dividends over time."
The Game Day Experience and Future Vision
The Gateway District, anchored by the reimagined David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium, is more than a venue. Whether you have a fully-baked idea or are just exploring the possible, our proven-effective approach makes it easy to help you determine where to start and how DI can help. We are an Experience Design + Build + Tech firm with a 30-yr.
Fans looking to experience David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium can purchase a full six-game season ticket package starting at $350. For more information on securing your tickets, submit an interest form to be contacted by a member of the sales team. The Kansas Football Preview Center is located on 11th and Mississippi in the HERE complex. Fans will have an opportunity to meet with professional seating representatives and experience first-hand what it will be like to sit in the current and newly developed Phase 2 premium spaces. There will be options to fit every Jayhawk fan!
From day one, the Gateway District is designed to go beyond football. On game days, it delivers energy, pride and immersive experiences for fans, players and recruits. But when the stadium lights dim, the momentum doesn’t stop. Every space is intentionally flexible and built to serve Jayhawk Nation year-round. The Player Path connects the Anderson Family Football Complex to the Jayhawk Club. Year-round, the Jayhawk Club functions as the sports nutrition hub for KU athletes. Ward Family Pavilion enhances the stadium's premium offerings and hospitality spaces, serving as a point of entry into the west side of the stadium. A 17-foot-tall Jayhawk, backlit with customizable full-color LEDs, serves as a beacon welcoming guests to the stadium and Conference Center from the Mississippi Street approach. A floating letter sculpture layered above the player path, reflecting university pride. Branding moments along the Player Path are designed to energize players and recruits, while also serving as donor and VIP experiences on game day. Wall graphics celebrating KU Football history add depth to the space, reinforcing tradition and pride. Inspired by the vast Kansas night sky, this level celebrates perseverance, pride, and passion-fittingly shaped by the state motto, "Ad Astra per Aspera" ("To the stars through difficulties"). Level 4 is home to the Ad Astra Grill & Market where fans can enjoy a wide variety of different food and beverages. From large-scale donor walls to naming recognition in suites, clubs, plazas and atriums, DI designed a variety of experiences that celebrate KU’s most generous supporters.
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A Historic Program
The Kansas Jayhawks football program is the intercollegiate football program of the University of Kansas. The program is classified in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Bowl Subdivision (FBS), and the team competes in the Big 12 Conference. The team's home field is David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium, which opened in 1921 and is one of the oldest college football stadiums in the nation. In 2019, immediately adjacent to the west of the stadium, the University of Kansas Football Indoor Practice Facility was completed.
KU's all-time record is 610-686-58 as of the conclusion of the 2024 season. The program saw a re-emergence under head coach Mark Mangino who won 50 games in eight seasons. From the departure of Mangino to 2021, the Jayhawks struggled to meet the same success as under Mangino. The program's overall record in that time frame was 22-111 (.165 win percentage). They also never won more than three games and never more than a single conference win during that time frame. They also had two winless seasons and five losing streaks of 10 or more games. The Jayhawks also lost 46 straight road games from the final year under Mangino to 2018 and 56 straight road conference games which spanned from 2009 to 2021. The Jayhawks had a streak of 44 consecutive losses to teams ranked in the AP poll that stood from a loss to 24th ranked Oklahoma in 2009 until the 2022 Season when they beat 18th Oklahoma State 37-16.
While Kansas has yet to have a Heisman Trophy winner, they have had one Heisman finalist and 2 other players receive votes. John Hadl, Bobby Douglass, and David Jaynes all received votes, Jaynes being the only finalist. Other notable former Kansas players include Pro Football Hall of Famers Gale Sayers, John Riggins, and Mike McCormack, as well as All-Americans Nolan Cromwell, Dana Stubblefield, Aqib Talib, and Anthony Collins. Former line coach Mike Getto is the only coach to have gone on to become a head coach in the NFL. Additionally, two members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame have been associated with Kansas Football: Phog Allen, who coached football at Kansas for a season in 1920, and Ralph Miller, who was a quarterback on the team from 1937 to 1940. Jim Bausch, who won gold in the decathlon at the 1932 Summer Olympics, was a running back at Kansas and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Kansas has appeared in fourteen bowl games, including three trips to the Orange Bowl (1948, 1969, and 2008). Kansas has also won six conference championships, most recently winning one in 1968. Along with Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, and Washington University in St. Louis, Kansas was a charter member of the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1907, which evolved into the Big Eight Conference.
The Jayhawks are one of the oldest football programs in the country, being founded in 1890. The most successful era for Kansas football was 1890 to 1952, when the program recorded four undefeated seasons and posted an overall .603 winning percentage, over 300 wins, several conference championships, and made major bowl appearances. From 1953 to 1968, the Jayhawks continued to find success on the football field, sharing three conference titles and attending more bowl games, but the team's overall winning percentage during that era slipped. The losing accelerated during the years 2010 to 2021, during which the team posted a 23-118 record (.163 winning percentage), including two of the three winless seasons in the program's history. During the 2012 season, the program's all-time winning percentage fell below .500 for the first time since KU finished 1-2 in 1890.
Coaching History
The University of Kansas fielded its first football team in 1890, led by player-coach Will Coleman. Kansas traveled to nearby Baker University to play the first college football game in Kansas to start that season. After playing an abbreviated three-game season in 1890, KU played its first full schedule in 1891 and immediately found success, posting a 7-0-1 record under head coach E. M. Hopkins. In 1899, Hall-of-Famer Fielding H. Yost served one season as KU's football coach, posting the first perfect season in school history (10-0). After the turn of the century, Hall-of-Famer John Outland, who played at KU in 1895-1896, returned to Kansas to serve as head coach, but struggled to a 3-5-2 record in his only season in 1901. The program had ten head coaches in its first 14 seasons, but A. R. Kennedy took the position in 1904 and held it for the next seven highly successful seasons, through 1910. Kennedy's overall coaching record at Kansas was 52-9-4. This still ranks as the most wins for any Kansas head coach, and puts him fourth at the school in terms of winning percentage (.831). Kennedy's best season was 1908, when the Jayhawks posted the school's second ever undefeated season (9-0) and won the school's first major conference championship, in the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association. KU has not had another perfect season since 1908.
A. R. Kennedy's long tenure was followed by another period of rapid turnover in coaches, with seven head coaches for KU in the next ten seasons. The most successful of these was Herman Olcott, who had a three-year tenure as head coach from 1915 to 1917, posting a record of 16-7-1 (.688). Basketball coach Phog Allen also served one year as head football coach during this era, with a record of 5-2-1 in 1920. Potsy Clark finally returned some stability to the position, serving as KU's head football coach for five seasons, from 1921 to 1925. Although Clark would later go on to find success as an NFL head coach, at KU he amassed a 16-17-6 record in his five seasons and left the school as the first coach with an overall losing record since John Outland in 1901.
Football innovator Bill Hargiss - one of the first in the sport to use the huddle and forward pass - was hired as KU head coach in 1928. Hargiss coached the team to a Big Six championship in 1930, but could not sustain success and was fired only two games into the 1932 season, after the Jayhawks lost at home to Oklahoma, 21-6. Hargiss recorded an overall mark of 18-16-2 (.528) as KU head coach. Through the end of Hargiss's tenure in 1932 the Jayhawks football program had registered a great deal of success, with only four of the first twenty coaches at KU suffering losing records. KU alum Adrian Lindsey was hired by his alma mater as head football coach in the middle of the 1932 season, taking over after the mid-season firing of Bill Hargiss. Lindsey led the Jayhawks to a 4-2 record during his first partial season. Lindsey's teams thereafter struggled to find success on the football field, posting an overall record of 23-30-8 during Lindsey's time as head coach. Lindsey was replaced after the 1938 season.
In 1939, Gwinn Henry, formerly head coach of the rival Missouri Tigers from 1923 to 1931, was hired to take over the struggling Jayhawks football program. In four seasons at KU, Henry failed to find much success on the field, going a dismal 9-27 - the worst record of any KU head coach to that time. Because of the struggles, Henry was fired after the 1942 season. Henry Shenk was hired to replace Gwinn Henry but failed to turn around the Jayhawks football program, which by this time had fallen to the bottom of the Big Six Conference. Though he was KU's head coach for only two years, George Sauer had an immediate impact on the program and was the most successful Jayhawks coach since A. R. Kennedy. Both of his KU teams won a share of the Big Six Conference, posting records of 7-2-1 and 8-1-2. His 1947 team was invited to KU's first bowl game, the Orange Bowl. Despite falling 20-14 to Georgia Tech in the bowl game, KU finished the 1947 season ranked No. 12 in the AP Poll - the program's first appearance in a final poll. Sauer departed after his successful 1947 season to accept the head football coach position at Navy. His final record at KU was 15-3-3, giving him the highest winning percentage of any KU coach since A. R.
Jules Sikes came to Kansas from his post as defensive line coach at Georgia. Sikes had success at KU, in particular 7-3 seasons in 1948 and 1952, 6-4 in 1950 and 8-2 in 1951 that included a No. Chuck Mather was hired in 1954 as the 27th head football coach for the Kansas Jayhawks. He started his tenure with an 0-10 season in 1954, the first winless season in KU history. Jack Mitchell left Arkansas and came to the Jayhawks to replace Mather in 1958. His overall coaching record at Kansas was 44-42-5 in nine seasons. This ranks him fourth at Kansas in terms of total wins and 20th at Kansas in terms of winning percentage. Mitchell's teams made one bowl appearance at KU, the 1961 Bluebonnet Bowl, a game KU won. That year, the Jayhawks finished the season with a 7-3-1 record and a No. 15 ranking in the final Coaches' poll. Mitchell's 1960 team also was successful. That year, the Jayhawks finished 7-2-1 and had a final ranking of No. 9 and No.
UCLA assistant coach Pepper Rodgers was chosen as the head football coach after Mitchell's retirement. Rodgers led the Jayhawks to the Big Eight Conference title in 1968, the Jayhawks' most recent conference championship. That year, the Jayhawks finished the season with a 9-2 record, an Orange Bowl appearance (a 15-14 loss to Penn State) and final rankings of No. 6 and No. Hall of Fame RB John Riggins played for Kansas from 1967 to 1970. A longtime Kansas assistant coach, Don Fambrough was elevated to head coach after the departure of Pepper Rodgers. During his first stint as head coach, Fambrough's only winning season was in 1973, when the Jayhawks finished the season 7-4-1 and made an appearance in the Liberty Bowl, a game they lost. That year, Kansas finished the season ranked No. 15 and No. Fambrough returned as head coach in 1979, and his second tenure as head coach is best known for the Jayhawks' 1981 season, that ended with an 8-4 record and an appearance in the All-American Bowl which, like many bowl games before it, resulted in a loss for the Jayhawks. Fambrough was fired after the 1982 season. His second tenure produced an 18-23-4 record, giving him an overall record of 37-48-5 in eight seasons at KU. In 1983, Kansas was found guilty of numerous recruiting violations, principally involving one of Fambrough's assistants. As a result, Kansas was banned from postseason play and live television in 1983.
Kansas hired Bud Moore, previously Alabama offensive coordinator under Bear Bryant, to replace Fambrough after his first exit from the Jayhawks. In his first season in 1975, Moore was named Big Eight Coach of the Year and was runner up to Woody Hayes as the Football Writers Association of America National Coach of the Year. Moore led his team to a 23-3 upset over eventual national champion Oklahoma, breaking the Sooners' 37-game winning streak. In 1976, the Jayhawks started 4-0 and were ranked 8th in the AP poll (the last time they would be ranked in 17 years), but after QB Nolan Cromwell suffered a season-ending knee injury against Oklahoma, KU finished 6-5. Gottfried departed Kansas after three seasons to accept the head football coach position at Pittsburgh. He was succeeded by offensive coordinator Bob Valesente. During Valesente's two seasons as head coach, the Jayhawks compiled a record of 4-17-1 overall, and 0-13-1 against Big Eight opponents - finishing with a winning percentage of .205, the worst in school history to that time (since surpassed by Charlie Weis, David Beaty, and Clint Bowen). The Jayhawks went 1-9-1 in 1987 with their only win being a 16-15 game against Southern Illinois. Valesente was fired at the end of the season. At the time of his firing, Valesente was in the second year of a four-year contract, which athletic director Bob Frederick said would be honored. Valesente told reporters, "I don't believe two years is enough to build a program. I just don't feel we've been given enough time." Valesente had undertaken efforts to improve the team's academic standing and noted, "I feel proud of the fact that we have begun to overcome some of the immense academic problems that have plagued us. We needed to first stop the academic attrition." Anthony Redwood, the chairman of the Kansas Athletic Corporation board and a business professor, resigned from the board in protest of the firing. Redwood noted, "Apparently we lack the courage at this institution to plan a course of action and stick with it.
KU hired Glen Mason away from Kent State to take over the Jayhawks football program in late 1987. Mason restored promise into KU's football program, with four winning seasons in his nine seasons and two bowl victories, the 1992 and 1995 Aloha Bowl, defeating BYU and UCLA, respectively. These were the first KU bowl victories since the 1961 Bluebonnet Bowl. The Jayhawks hired Mark Mangino, previously offensive coordinator at Oklahoma, as the new KU head coach in late 2001. The program had not posted a winning season in any of the 6 seasons prior to his arrival. While an intense, foul-mouthed and fiery coach, Mangino was able to enjoy success at that previous KU coaches hadn't. In 2003, his second season at KU, Mangino led the Jayhawks to an appearance in the 2003 Tangerine Bowl (now known as the Russell Athletic Bowl). This was the first bowl appearance for Kansas since 1995. In 2005, his fourth season at KU, the team finished the regular season 6-5, to post its first winning record under Mangino, and went on to the Fort Worth Bowl, its second bowl game in three seasons. Among the Jayhawks' wins was a 40-15 victory over Nebraska, breaking a losing streak that had begun in 1969, which was the second-longest streak of consecutive losses to one team in NCAA history. The same year Mangino also built a defense that ranked 11th nationally in yards allowed per game and featured third-team All-American and Big 12 Conference Defensive Player of the Year linebacker Nick Reid as well as a pair of talented cornerbacks in Charles Gordon and Aqib Talib. In 2007, Mangino coached the Jayhawks to a 12-1 record and the 2008 Orange Bowl. The Jayhawks defeated Virginia Tech 24-21 in that game, which gave the Jayhawks their first and only BCS Bowl Game appearance and victory. Mangino's Jayhawk defense was ranked 12th in the nation, and 4th in scoring defense. Following a win against rival Iowa State, Mark Mangino became the fir…
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