Ohio Stadium Ohio Stadium is an American football stadium in Columbus , Ohio , United States , on the campus of The Ohio State University . Its primary purpose is the home venue of the Ohio State Buckeyes football team . From 1996 – 98 , Ohio Stadium was the home venue for Major League Soccer team Columbus Crew prior to the opening of Columbus Crew Stadium in 1999 . The stadium also was the home venue for the OSU track and field teams from 1923 – 2001 . In addition to athletics , Ohio Stadium is also a concert venue , with U2 , The Rolling Stones , Pink Floyd , and Metallica among the many acts to have played there , and also serves as the site for the university ' s Spring Commencement ceremonies each May . The stadium does not have permanent field lights . When night events do occur , temporary field lights are brought in . The stadium opened in 1922 as a replacement for Ohio Field and had a seating capacity of 66 , 210 . In 1923 , a cinder running track was added and the stadium , which was later upgraded to an all - weather track . Seating capacity gradually increased over the years and reached 91 , 470 in 1991 . Beginning in 2000 , the stadium was renovated and expanded in several phases , removing the track and adding additional seating , which raised the capacity to 101 , 568 by 2001 . Since 2007 , the capacity is listed at 102 , 329 , though crowds above 105 , 000 are common . It is the largest stadium by capacity in the state of Ohio , the fourth largest football stadium in the United States , and the seventh largest non - racing stadium in the world . Ohio Stadium was added to the National Register of Historic Places by the National Park Service on March 22 , 1974 . It is popularly known as " The Horseshoe " because of its shape . Construction . As early as 1913 , Ohio Field at High Street and Woodruff Avenue was unable to contain the crowds attracted to many Buckeye home football games . This led to faculty discussion of moving the site elsewhere and building a new facility . The growing popularity of football in Ohio led to the design of a horseshoe - shaped stadium , conceptualized and designed by architect Howard Dwight Smith in 1918 . A public - subscription Stadium Campaign to fund the project began in October 1920 and raised over $ 1 . 1 million in pledges by January 1921 , of which $ 975 , 001 were actually honored . The stadium was completed in 1922 by E . H . Latham Company of Columbus , with materials and labor from the Marble Cliff Quarry Co . at a construction cost of $ 1 . 34 million and a total cost of $ 1 . 49 million . The stadium ' s original capacity was 66 , 210 . Upon completion , it was the largest poured concrete structure in the world . Many university officials feared that the stadium would never be filled to capacity . Smith employed numerous revolutionary architectural techniques while building the stadium . At the base is a slurry wall to keep out the waters from the Olentangy River ; the stadium sets on the flood plain . Instead of building a large bowl like the previously constructed Yale Bowl , Ohio Stadium was designed to have an upper deck that would hang over part of the lower deck , giving Ohio Stadium its " A " , " B " , and " C " decks . Instead of employing numerous columns like those at Harvard Stadium , Smith designed double columns that allow for more space between columns . The rotunda at the north end of the stadium , which is now adorned with stained glass murals of the offensive and defensive squads that comprise the Buckeye football team , was designed to look like the dome at the Pantheon in Rome . History . The first game in the stadium was against Ohio Wesleyan University on October 7 , 1922 , and brought a crowd of around 25 , 000 , which left people concerned because the stadium was half empty . This concern was put to rest at the stadium ' s formal dedication against Michigan on October 21 , which the Wolverines won , 19 – 0 . The crowd was announced at the game to be 72 , 000 , but no one is really sure how many people made it into the stadium . This attendance mark was broken in a game against Michigan in 1925 when 90 , 411 came out to support the Buckeyes ; this is also the last time standing - room - only tickets were sold for a game . The stadium did not regularly sell out until after WWII , and in the 1920s and 1930s most games only drew in 20 , 000 or 30 , 000 fans with many more attending the annual game against Michigan . The 1935 contest with Notre Dame was a sellout , with over 81 , 000 in attendance . In 1923 , a cinder track was built around the football field , which would later be named after Olympian and Ohio State athlete Jesse Owens . The stadium was home to the OSU track and field teams until the opening of Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in 2001 . Renovations . As time passed , minor adjustments raised the seating capacity to more than 90 , 000 . In 1984 , a new $ 2 . 1 million scoreboard was installed . The stadium was heavily renovated from 2000 to 2001 . The press box was replaced , additional seating was installed above the existing upper deck , and 81 luxury suites and 2 , 500 club seats were added . The south end zone scoreboard was also replaced by a 90 ft . x 30 ft . video board that is able to show replays , highlights , animations , graphics and statistical information . Additionally , a smaller version of the south end scoreboard was added to the north end and a new LED ribbon board that runs end - zone to end - zone was added to the balcony prior to the 2009 season . The track was removed and the field of play was lowered by 14 . 5 feet to add seating closer to the field . The temporary bleachers in the south end zone were replaced with permanent seating . However , the south end of the stadium remains partially open , thus allowing the stadium to maintain its notable horseshoe configuration . General improvements were made in the seating and concourse areas . The result of the $ 194 million renovation was a capacity that rose to 101 , 568 . Eighty percent of the cost of the renovation was funded by the sale of leases on the suites and club seats , with the remaining 20 % funded by donations and the sale of naming rights for portions of the stadium . No public or university money was spent in the renovation process . In 1970 , the natural grass field was removed , and AstroTurf was installed , complements of a donation by Lou Fisher in dedication to fellow football player Joseph Campanella . A plaque was placed on the southeast corner in memory of Campanella . In 1979 , the surface was replaced with Superturf . In 1990 , natural grass made its return to the Horseshoe , a special grass called " Prescription Athletic Turf . " New field designs were put in place for the 1992 season and existed through the 2006 season . During that last season problems with the natural grass began to arise . After serious damage to the field during use in the spring of 2006 , the field never recovered and had to be resodded . That grass never took root because of bad weather , and the university was forced to resod the field again only three weeks after the old sod was laid . The university spent approximately $ 150 , 000 to perform both soddings . OSU replaced the natural grass with FieldTurf for the 2007 season . This new artificial turf looks and feels like real grass but requires minimal upkeep . In March 2012 the university announced a $ 7 million renovation to the scoreboard installed during the 2000 - 01 renovation . The project began April 23 and was completed in time for the 2012 season opener on September 1 . The current scoreboard includes a Panasonic HD screen , stretching 124 feet by 42 feet , and incorporates upgrades to the audio system and the LED running boards ( which are the smaller screens underneath the larger screen that usually display score updates and advertisements ) . A Pro Sound audio system with 25 different speakers flank the scoreboard . Older speakers throughout the Horseshoe received improvements and will eventually be replaced by new speakers fitted into the existing framework . Night football games . List of Ohio Stadium Night Football Games Largest attendance . Ohio State has ranked in the top five for attendance for many years . Ohio State holds the national spring game record , when they drew 95 , 722 fans for the 2009 Spring Game , on April 25 , 2009 . The attendance broke the previous record of 92 , 138 set by Alabama in their 2007 Spring Game . Events . Buckeye football . The largest crowd at Ohio Stadium was 106 , 102 for the Buckeyes ' 63 – 38 win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers on October 6 , 2012 . The previous record of 106 , 033 was set in 2009 , in an 18 – 15 loss to the USC Trojans . In 2002 , Mel Kiper , Jr . ranked Ohio Stadium second in atmosphere , behind the Army - Navy Game , and quoted Beano Cook in saying " There is nothing that beats when the Ohio State Marching Band and the sousaphone player dots the ' i ' for Script Ohio . " The crowd attending these home games is known for creating harsh and difficult environments for opponents . University of Iowa coach Hayden Fry complained after a 1985 loss that the fans were too loud for his quarterback , Chuck Long , to call plays and suggested sound meters be used to gauge the noise level , penalizing home teams if there was too much noise . He said , " It ' s a realistic fact that happened . He became mentally disturbed for the first time since he ' s been a starter for us because of his inability to communicate . " Columbus Crew . Major League Soccer games were held at Ohio Stadium between 1996 and 1999 . The home opener was held on April 13 , 1996 , against D . C . United before 25 , 266 fans . Brian McBride scored 2 goals and had an assist in a 4 – 0 rout . The field at Ohio Stadium was the smallest in the MLS , measuring only 62 yards wide by 106 yards long , limited by the track surrounding it . Because of the smaller market for soccer than Ohio State football , B Deck , C Deck , and the South end zone seats were closed , leading to a capacity of 25 , 243 . Attendance stayed strong through the first season , seeing a record audience of 31 , 550 September 15 , 1996 win over the MetroStars , 2 – 0 . Despite the facility ' s size , problems like field dimensions and the lack of lighting pushed the Crew to find a new home . Jamey Rootes , Crew president and general manager stated , " We prefer a smaller , more intimate environment ( than Ohio Stadium ) . . . We ' ve got to create a major league environment . Ohio Stadium is a great stadium , but we cannot create a major league environment in a facility that is way too big for us . " The Crew finished their tenure at Ohio Stadium 30 – 18 .