Tag: Camp Randall Stadium

Camp Randall Stadium to play host to famous rock band in July, 2025

Camp Randall Stadium to play host to famous rock band in July, 2025

Camp Randall Stadium will host the famous rock band Coldplay during its Music of the Spheres World Tour 2025 on Saturday, July 19, 2025.

This will mark the first concert at Camp Randall Stadium since Oct. 6, 1997, when the iconic football venue played host to The Rolling Stones during its Blues Traveler show.

Camp Randall Stadium also hosted Pink Floyd, Genesis and U2 in the 1980s and 1990s. But after the Stones came to town in 1997, the stadium experienced an extended drought in shows due to low attendance rates and the popularity of other venues in places like Milwaukee and Chicago.

Next summer’s show in Madison is one of 10 added North American shows slated to take place in May, June, and July 2025. The band will also play at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida, Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee, Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts, Rogers Stadium in Toronto, Canada Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas, Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado, Allegiant Field in Las Vegas, Nevada and Stanford Stadium in California.

The presale for tickets begins on Friday, Oct. 11 at 9 a.m. CT. The general sale begins Friday, Oct. 11 at noon CT.

Wisconsin vs. South Dakota: Series history, all-time record

Wisconsin vs. South Dakota: Series history, all-time record

Wisconsin (1-0) welcomes South Dakota (1-0) to Madison on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT for its second contest of the 2024 season. It will be the third all-time meeting between the two schools and the first since 2011.

The Badgers own a 2-0 record against the Coyotes, knocking them off in their last meeting 59-10 in September 2011. They won their only prior matchup 48-7 in 1975.

Wisconsin is coming off a 28-14 win over Western Michigan in Week 1, rallying to win the contest after trailing 14-13 in the fourth quarter. Running Tawee Walker and quarterback Tyler Van Dyke each scored a rushing touchdown as the Badgers scored 15 points unanswered to close the game.

When it comes to South Dakota, the Badgers have never lost to an FCS opponent, posting a 13-0 overall record all-time. The Coyotes are coming off a dominant 45-3 win over Northern State in Week 1, a performance they will look to replicate at Camp Randall Stadium on Saturday.

Wisconsin vs. Western Michigan: Series history, all-time record

Wisconsin vs Western Michigan all-time series record

The Wisconsin Badgers will begin their 2024 season on Friday night, hosting Western Michigan at Camp Randall Stadium. It will be the sixth all-time meeting between the two programs and the first since 2017.

To this point, the Badgers have gone 4-1 in their five previous matchups against the Broncos, most recently defeating them 24-16 in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 2, 2017. Western Michigan’s head coach for that contest: current Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck.

The last time that Western Michigan came to Camp Randall was on Aug. 31, 2000, a game in which Wisconsin won 19-7. The Broncos had beaten the Badgers in their prior matchup 24-14 in 1988, their only win against Wisconsin all-time.

In general, Wisconsin has posted a 36-1 overall record against the Mid-American Conference (MAC) throughout history.

The Badgers have won their last two season openers, defeating Illinois State in 2022 and Buffalo in 2023, and they’ll look to extend that to three straight victories against Western Michigan on Friday.

BREAKING: Camp Randall Stadium to begin alcohol sales at start of 2024 football season

Your reaction to the news that Camp Randall Stadium will begin alcohol sales at start of 2024 football season?

Camp Randall Stadium will begin alcohol sales at the start of the Badgers’ 2024 football season, according to a recent release from UW Athletics.

The sales will begin on Wisconsin’s Friday, Aug. 30 home opener against Western Michigan. The alcohol products will be available in the general seating areas at Camp Randall and will include beer, wine and other pre-packaged varieties.

Related: Where Wisconsin lands in USA TODAY Sports’ 2024 Big Ten football preseason poll

“The option to purchase alcohol is common at collegiate athletic venues all over the country and we’re glad that we can now offer it as part of the fan experience at Camp Randall,” Wisconsin Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin said in a release. “I appreciate the work our athletic and administrative teams have done to put together a plan that balances this opportunity with public safety.”

This news comes after the Kohl Center, home of Wisconsin’s men’s and women’s basketball, and men’s hockey teams, began selling alcohol at the start of the 2023-24 winter season.

“We were pleased with how well alcohol sales went during the basketball and hockey seasons at the Kohl Center and LaBahn Arena last season and we expect much of the same at Camp Randall this fall,” Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh also said in the release.

This news has been anticipated by Badgers fans for decades. It should add even more excitement to the football team’s upcoming campaign — the second under new head coach Luke Fickell. The Badgers’ home schedule in 2024 includes Western Michigan, South Dakota, Alabama, Purdue, Penn State, Oregon and rival Minnesota.

Monday’s release notes that alcohol sales will also begin at the UW Field House for volleyball games.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion.

Where Wisconsin’s Camp Randall Stadium ranks on ESPN’s list of the top 25 college football stadiums

Is Camp Randall Stadium overrated, underrated, or properly rated?

Wisconsin’s Camp Randall Stadium made ESPN’s recent list of the top 25 venues in college football.

The rankings come from a collection of thoughts and votes from 14 of ESPN’s most prominent college football writers. Each writer submitted their top 20 stadiums in order, with each venue getting 20 points for a first-place vote, 19 for second place, 18 for third place and so on.

Related: Full recap of power rankings for every Big Ten football position group entering 2024 season

Unsurprisingly, the list of the 25 top venues includes nine stadiums from the new Big Ten Conference. We’ve ranked the expanded conference’s 18 home venues, which becomes a tall task given the group’s high number of top-end stadiums.

Our ranking differs from ESPN’s, especially with the placement of Michigan Stadium. We have it down at No. 10 in the Big Ten, while ESPN has it up at No. 3 in the entire sport.

Either way, every ranking is high on Wisconsin’s Camp Randall Stadium. Here is where the Badgers’ historic home venue ranks among the rest of the sport’s top stadiums:

ESPN: Wisconsin’s Camp Randall Stadium one of top venues in college football

ESPN: Wisconsin’s Camp Randall Stadium one of top venues in college football

Wisconsin’s Camp Randall Stadium landed at No. 8 in ESPN’s latest ranking of the top 25 college football venues on Thursday.

The Badgers’ home turf was notably ranked just above Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium, Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium and Clemson Memorial Stadium.

It is one of nine Big Ten football venues to make the list, along with UCLA‘s Rose Bowl Stadium (No. 2), Michigan‘s Michigan Stadium (No. 3), Penn State‘s Beaver Stadium (No. 5), Washington‘s Husky Stadium (No. 6), Ohio State‘s Ohio Stadium (No. 7), Oregon‘s Autzen Stadium (No. 14), Nebraska‘s Memorial Stadium (No. 16) and USC‘s Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (No. 22).

LSU’s Tiger Stadium captured the No. 1 overall spot, while Texas’ Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium rounded out the list at No. 25.

Home of the iconic “Jump Around” tradition, Camp Randall was established in 1917. The grounds originally served as a Union Army training camp during the Civil War before being morphed into a football and baseball playing field in 1895.

More than 100 years later, Camp Randall can now host a capacity crowd of 75,822 and welcomes fans from across the country to witness the Badgers during Saturday home games every fall.

Deep-rooted tradition and history likely vault the stadium’s position into the list’s top 10. Camp Randall may not provide fans with scenic views of geographical wonders, but the spirit and passion associated with Badger football are undeniable.

Wisconsin Badgers’ Camp Randall Stadium updated seating capacity

Wisconsin football’s Camp Randall Stadium updated seating capacity:

Wisconsin football’s Camp Randall Stadium has become a central topic of conversation after EA Sports College Football 25 included it in its ranking of the toughest places to play in the sport.

That has led many in the college football world to opine on whether the reputation is warranted, or whether it’s more rooted in a past decade’s performance.

Related: Big Ten Football Power Index Rankings for 2024: Which teams are underrated, overrated?

Either way, Camp Randall is one of the storied venues in the sport and continues to represent the gold standard of what a college football stadium should provide.

2022’s south end zone renovation was one further step in that direction. While it reduced the stadium’s capacity from 80,321 to 75,822, it added another dimension of luxury to the gameday environment to complement the other 70,000 seats in the stadium.

That minor drop in seating capacity has Camp Randall as the new Big Ten’s seventh-largest venue, behind only Michigan Stadium (Michigan), Beaver Stadium (Penn State), Ohio Stadium (Ohio State), the Rose Bowl (UCLA), Memorial Stadium (Nebraska) and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (USC).

It still can create one of the conference’s most electric atmospheres, as demonstrated in some of the Badgers’ biggest home wins over the last few decades:

There is always a discussion about student attendance and 11 a.m. kickoffs. But that should not distract from the stadium’s rightful place among college football’s best venues and toughest places to play.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion.

PHOTOS: Wisconsin football’s biggest wins at Camp Randall Stadium over the years

What is your most memorable game experience at Camp Randall Stadium?

The college football news cycle on June 25, 2024, surrounded EA Sports College Football 25’s ranking of the toughest home environments in the sport. Wisconsin’s Camp Randall Stadium made the list at No. 7 overall, which was not universally agreed upon, to say the least.

EA Sports’ ranking had everybody opining on which stadiums were overrated, which were omitted from the ranking and how the list should be reordered.

Related: EA Sports College Football 25 unveils ranking of toughest places to play in college football

The measure of stadium environments is almost entirely subjective. There are some objectively great home field environments — including Penn State‘s Beaver Stadium. But there is no tangible way to compare how much a certain stadium atmosphere affects the game.

It’s usually true that the best teams in the country (Alabama, Georgia, Clemson) also boast great home environments. That’s because the teams are really good, plus some level fan excitement that is driven by winning.

So this piece is not to re-litigate EA Sports’ ranking and Wisconsin’s place within it. Instead, it’s a look back at some of the Badgers’ biggest games at Camp Randall over the years that helped to build the stadium’s strong national reputation:

Wisconsin could be back in Camp Randall earlier than expected

Wisconsin could be back in Camp Randall earlier than expected

The 2024 college football season is still a few months away and the Wisconsin Badgers will once again will be playing in Camp Randall, their home for football since 1917.

Camp Randall has been undergoing some renovations this offseason, making the playing surface heated. The heated surface will allow the Badgers to host games at the stadium more easily in the cold months of winter, potentially in the College Football Playoff.

Related: Wisconsin football 2024 spring transfer portal window tracker

As the team has gone through their spring practices over the last few weeks, Camp Randall has been unavailable. But they did get good news Saturday — the stadium is reportedly ahead of schedule and the team could be back playing in it by July.

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Badger Countdown: Top WR snags 74-yard reception in 2022 opener

The return of Badger football is now just 74 days away as Wisconsin gears up to face Buffalo in their season opener at home on Sept. 2. 

The return of Badger football is now just 74 days away as Wisconsin gears up to face Buffalo in their season opener at home on Sept. 2. In their first game of the 2022 season, star wide receiver Chimere Dike recorded a 74-yard catch.

In the Badgers’ 38-0 win over Illinois State on Sept. 3, 2022, Dike caught three passes for 106 yards and a touchdown, including a monster 74-yard snag in the third quarter. Although he didn’t reach the endzone on the reception, quarterback Graham Mertz was able to find him for a 16-yard score a couple plays later.

The contest was the first time that Dike had gone over 100 receiving yards in his career with the Badgers and he went on to record 10 catches for 185 yards and three touchdowns against Northwestern in October, all of which were career highs.

Now with a new quarterback in Tanner Mordecai in 2023, the wide receiver will look to build off of his 47 catches, 689 receiving yards and six scores from last season.

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