Northwestern football to debut new Ryan Field on Oct. 2 vs Penn State
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Northwestern football has a date for the opening of its brand-new football stadium.
The Wildcats will host their first game at the new Ryan Field ― the $862 million stadium built on the site of the old Ryan Field — vs. Penn State on Friday, Oct. 2.
Northwestern will open its 2026 home schedule with games against South Dakota State (Sept. 5) and Colorado (Sept. 19) at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium. The campus facility along Lake Michigan is where the Wildcats played the majority of their home games in 2024 and 2025 amid the constructionof the brand-new 35,000-seat facility.
The Wildcats also played four games at Wrigley field in that time span.
“The opening of the new Ryan Field marks a defining moment for Northwestern Football and reflects our continued investment in excellence across every aspect of the program,” athletic director Mark Jackson said in a news release. “The opener against Penn State, presented by Fox Sports, provides us with an extraordinary stage to showcase the incredible stadium and the culture that head coach David Braun has established.
“We appreciate the dedication and support of our fans and campus community, and we look forward to welcoming them to the nation’s greatest college football stadium that will elevate the student-athlete experience and bring us together in powerful and memorable ways.”
The Oct. 2 date will mark exactly 100 years to the date of the opening of Northwestern’s old stadium. The stadium hosted its first football game in 1926.
Construction for the new Ryan Field is on track for completion for mid-September, and will allow the team to host its Big Ten schedule at its new home. The time between the finishing of construction and the Penn State game will be used as a soft opening.
“We are incredibly appreciative of our remarkable workers, subcontractors and our partners at Central Street Consortium for being on track to deliver the new Ryan Field on time, despite the unexpected number of weather days that we’ve experienced,” Pat Ryan Jr., CEO of Ryan Sports Development, said in the release.
“We also sincerely appreciate the patience of our neighbors throughout the construction process.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Northwestern football reveals date it will play at new Ryan Field
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