Schools

Northwestern's New Ryan Field Opens Friday

The very first event at Northwestern University's new Ryan Field will be a Wildcats home game vs. Penn State.

Ryan Field will make its public debut on Oct. 2, hosting Penn State for the inaugural game at the new stadium.
Ryan Field will make its public debut on Oct. 2, hosting Penn State for the inaugural game at the new stadium. (Northwestern University)

EVANSTON, IL — Northwestern University's new Ryan Field will host its very first game on Friday, with a Wildcats game against Penn State.

Ryan Field will make its public debut on Oct. 2, hosting Penn State for the inaugural game at the new stadium. The October debut marks exactly 100 years to the day that the original stadium hosted its first football game in 1926.

The new facility, described as “transforming the traditional stadium model into a year-round community asset,” replaced the nearly century-old Ryan Field, formerly known as Dyche Stadium.

Find out what's happening in Evanstonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Following Friday's game, there are four more upcoming home games at Ryan Field:

  • Oct. 10 - Northwestern vs Ball State & The Great Chicago Food Festival
  • Oct. 24 - Northwestern vs Rutgers & The Great Chicago Food Festival
  • Nov. 7 - Northwestern vs Iowa & The Great Chicago Food Festival
  • Nov. 28 - Northwestern vs Illinois & The Great Chicago Food Festival

Find out what's happening in Evanstonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.