Cotton Bowl (Dallas, Texas)
I saw numerous football games at the historic Cotton Bowl, including those featuring the Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Texans and SMU Mustangs. I was there for a half-dozen UT-Oklahoma games and the Cotton Bowl Classics in 1969, 1971, 1974, 1977 and 2000. I was also at the Cotton Bowl in 1994 for the South Korea-Nigeria World Cup soccer match. Favorite memory: Seeing the Ponies’ Jerry LeVias and Mike Richardson decimate North Carolina State in 1968.
Burnett Field (Dallas, Texas)
This place had numerous names and tenants between 1924 and 1964. I saw the Dallas Rangers play a few baseball games there before they moved to Arlington. Two players who went on to success in the majors were Cesar Tovar and Tony Oliva. Interesting historical note: The Dallas Cowboys used Burnett Field as their main practice facility in the early 1960s.
Memorial Auditorium (Dallas, Texas)
This is where I saw my first Dallas Chaparrals game—their opponents were the New Jersey Americans, if I am not mistaken—and where I graduated from Bryan Adams High School in 1971.
Moody Coliseum (Dallas, Texas)
Home to SMU hoops since 1957. I saw the Mustangs play many times, as well as the Chaparrals after they moved from Memorial Auditorium. Favorite memories: When (1) Gene Philips hit a long turnaround jumper to beat TCU in 1970 and (2) a furious, cursing Rick Barry of the Washington Capitols got tossed from a game against my Chaps.
State Fair Coliseum (Dallas, Texas)
Adjacent to the Cotton Bowl, this was home to the minor league Dallas Blackhawks hockey team, coached by the very intense Bobby Kromm. I saw one game in 1971 and remember almost nothing about it.
Ownby Stadium (Dallas, Texas)
When SMU football came back from the death penalty in 1989, I went to Dallas to see the Moo-Moos play their first home game against Rice. My girlfriend thought that was kind of odd. I had also been there for an SMU track meet and a red-and-blue spring football game during my high school days.
American Airlines Arena (Dallas, Texas)
I have seen one hockey game there—the Dallas Stars vs. Detroit Red Wings in 2007. It is also home for the Dallas Mavericks, 2011 NBA champs.
Reunion Arena (Dallas, Texas)
I saw the Dallas Mavericks play one game there in the 1980s but do not remember the opponent. I also attended one of the Dallas Stars’ hockey games in the 1990s. Again, the other team has been forgotten.
Fouts Field (Denton, Texas)
Without even buying a ticket, I saw a portion of a football game between North Texas and some other institution of higher learning in 1980. I think the Eagles won, but I am not sure.
Rice Stadium (Houston, Texas)
Home of the Rice University football team. I saw a couple of UT-Rice games in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Although this was a well-designed stadium, it was in bad shape because the Owls did not draw enough fans to merit the expense of renovation and even basic maintenance. I read somewhere that Rice loses more money on sports than any other college in the USA.
Astrodome (Houston, Texas)
I went to a few of the Astros’ games there, beginning in 1967. I was back in Houston in 1987 to see the Longhorns play UH at the Dome, but my car broke down and I did not reach the stadium. I missed a humbling 60-40 loss to the Cougars.
HemisFair Arena (San Antonio, Texas)
In 1976, I drove from Austin to San Antonio to witness some ABA playoff action between the Spurs (formerly the Dallas Chaps) and the New York Nets. This is when Julius Erving was in his prime, and I can tell you he was superb. The Doctor could certainly operate.
—— (San Antonio, Texas)
Try though I might, I am unable to find the name of this cozy facility. For some reason, around 1983 I wanted to see Jody Conradt’s formidable Texas women’s hoops team play against their little sisters at UTSA. It was not close.
V. J. Keefe Memorial Stadium (San Antonio, Texas)
Located on the St. Mary’s University campus, this was an unpretentious but charming place to hold baseball games. I saw the San Antonio Missions play somebody there, circa 1988.
Alamodome (San Antonio, Texas)
This 65,000-seat stadium was built in the hope that an NFL team would eventually materialize, but no-go. The secondary purpose was to keep the San Antonio Spurs happy. From way up in the cheap seats, I saw them play several times. I also saw Tom Penders’ UT team play Maryland in the late 1990s, and I was there when the New Orleans Saints—temporarily displaced by Hurricane Katrina—met the Buffalo Bills.
SBC Center (San Antonio, Texas)
Now known as the AT&T Center, this has been the Spurs’ home since 2002. I have been there once, with a GF named Leeny, to see the Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers.
Homer Bryce Stadium (Nacogdoches, Texas)
I was a student at Stephen F. Austin State University in the fall of 1975. I went to two of the Lumberjacks' football games that season, one of which was against the Angelo State Rams. I remember sitting in the stands with a girl named Diane, and both of us were shivering in the cold.
State Fair Stadium (Shreveport, Louisiana)
While at SFA, I drove my Volkswagen east to Shreveport to see a pro football game. The World Football League was another pretender, seeking to challenge the NFL. I arrived in time to watch the Shreveport Steamer take on some other obscure team. The league ceased operations soon thereafter.
Don Haskins Center (El Paso, Texas)
I was in El Paso in the winter of 1994 to do an interview for my book Coming to Texas. While there, I attended a basketball game in which UT-El Paso took on some team that wore green uniforms. This is all I remember.
Turnpike Stadium/Arlington Stadium (Arlington, Texas)
Monte DeVinney and I went there in 1965 to see a baseball game: the Dallas-Ft. Worth Spurs versus whoever (it was a long time ago!). When the Washington Senators moved to Texas in 1972, this served as home for 21 years. I was there for a game against the Kansas City Royals and their star Bo Jackson, and although the Rangers were in the majors everything about the place screamed “bush league.”
The Ballpark in Arlington (Arlington, Texas)
One of my brothers invited me to join him at a game early in the Rangers’ first season there (1994). I think they played the Baltimore Orioles, but I could be wrong.
Memorial Stadium (Austin, Texas)
I wrote a book about this stadium, which is near and dear to me. Home to Longhorns football since 1924, it is the heart and soul of the UT campus. Favorite memory: I was sitting with my then-GF Mary Lou on one of the lowest rows in the southwest corner of the stadium in 1984 when Texas hosted Auburn. Bo Jackson got loose on a 53-yard scamper down the right sideline. Our all-American safety Jerry Gray had the angle and ran him down. It was a hell of a collision, right in front of us.
Clark Field (Austin, Texas)
During my student days, I attended one Texas baseball game at this old park just north of Memorial Stadium. The opponent is long forgotten, but I do remember being puzzled by “Billy Goat Hill,” a limestone cliff in center field that always caused havoc for outfielders. Long since demolished, it is now the site of the Bass Concert Hall.
Disch-Falk Field (Austin, Texas)
The replacement for Clark Field in 1975, this venue was part of UT's move across Interstate 35 into east Austin. Some of the residents were not happy, and they are still not. I am not a big fan of college baseball, but I've been to perhaps 10 of the Longhorns' games at "the Disch." It recently underwent a $27 million renovation and had a local credit union's name appended to those of Uncle Billy Disch and Bibb Falk.
Gregory Gymnasium (Austin, Texas)
A classic college basketball arena in the middle of the UT campus for nearly 50 years. I fondly recall attending Longhorns games in which seemingly all the fans were between the ages of 18 and 22. It was more youthful energy than you could shake a stick at. Favorite memory: Looking over at the Texas bench and thinking that coach Leon Black might die of a heart attack at any minute.
Erwin Center (Austin, Texas)
Gregory Gym’s replacement in 1977, it was bigger, more modern and most of all sterile. I suppose that now, after nearly 35 years, it has developed some history. Favorite memory: When Brandy Perryman stole a pass late in the game to seal a win over North Carolina in 1997—I think.
Mike Myers Stadium (Austin, Texas)
When the track was removed at Memorial Stadium in 1999, UT built a new facility two blocks to the east. It is home to the soccer team—women only, due to Title 9—and track & field. I saw one soccer game and the Texas Relays there a couple of times. Myers is a big-money boy who gave $3 million in exchange for the immortality of having the facility named after him. It is far better to give quietly, in my view.
Woltman Activities Center (Austin, Texas)
Not only is this place gone, but the entire Concordia University campus has moved out to the Austin suburbs. I attended many of the Stags’ basketball games and chatted with coach Tom Orton if he had a spare minute while his teams warmed up. I also saw a few of the women’s games there.
Keller/Faszholz Field (Austin, Texas)
Like the above-mentioned Woltman Activities Center, this quaint baseball facility bit the dust when Concordia moved. It was a nice place to watch a game, and there was never an admission fee. I had the honor to know both James Keller and Jack Faszholz.
Recreation and Convocation Center (Austin, Texas)
St. Edward’s University plays basketball there. Since I was a friend of the Hilltoppers’ coach, Tom Pate, I went to a few of their games in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Lucian-Hamilton Field (Austin, Texas)
And this is where the Hilltoppers play baseball. I sat through a few innings of "springtime madness" on my way to or from the St. Ed's library—the site of a lot of studying and writing over the years.
Mary E. Branch Gymnasium (Austin, Texas)
Home to the Huston-Tillotson basketball program. I was at this solid little gym once to see the Rams and Concordia face off. Very interesting historical note: Jackie Robinson coached hoops at H-T in 1944.
Dell Diamond (Round Rock, Texas)
When this baseball stadium opened in 2000, I and a couple of co-workers named Richard and William drove to Round Rock to see the Express take on another AA club. Financed and in large part designed by Nolan Ryan, it was surely the finest minor league stadium I had ever seen.
Amon Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, Texas)
This is where the TCU Horned Frogs play football. I visited just once, in 1978, shortly after I returned to Texas from North Carolina. I went alone and sat next to a very nice lady. The Horns won, with Donnie Little at quarterback.
Will Rogers Coliseum (Fort Worth, Texas)
I went there once, in 1970, when the owners of the Dallas Chaparrals were trying to make it a regional franchise—games in Dallas, Fort Worth and Lubbock. How stupid was that?!? Still a high school student, I drove to Cowtown to see the Chaps meet the Kentucky Colonels. My only memory is of Louie Dampier taking lots of 3-point shots.
Baylor Stadium (Waco, Texas)
I have been to the Bears’ home football field thrice. Two of those games were Texas vs. Baylor, and the other was in 1986 when Southern Cal came to Waco and won 17-14. I won’t call it my favorite memory, but I will never forget talking with former UT coach Darrell Royal at halftime of one of the aforementioned games and hearing him ramble incoherently. The man had to have been intoxicated.
Heart O’ Texas Coliseum (Waco, Texas)
This was a barn, both literally and figuratively. The smell of livestock was never far away, and I do not exaggerate. Baylor hoops called the off-campus gym home between 1953 and 1988. When Texas and SMU tied for the Southwest Conference championship in 1972, they met halfway between Austin and Dallas—in Waco. I drove with some friends to the game, which went to the orange and white; we advanced to the NCAAs.
Ferrell Center (Waco, Texas)
I visited this place just once, in 1998, when Chris Mihm and Luke Axtell were frosh. UT whupped the Baylor Bears something bad.
Robertson Center (Georgetown, Texas)
Lulu and I traveled 25 miles north on Interstate 35 in 1985 to see Concordia face Southwestern University. The Pirates prevailed, with a fine player named Bobby Deaton.
Kyle Field (College Station, Texas)
Few things can match the UT-A&M football rivalry, and thus I attended three games at Kyle Field. I could never have been an Aggie, but I admire how reverently they treat this old facility.
G. Rollie White Coliseum (College Station, Texas)
They called it “the holler house on the Brazos,” and the Aggies could really make some noise. This was their home from 1954 until 1998. In that last year, I drove over from Austin to see some good old-fashioned brotherly hate (Texas versus A&M). I do not remember who won the game, which was marred by a fight in the stands that ended up involving numerous people.
Ohio Stadium (Columbus, Ohio)
While living in Michigan, my girlfriend Pammy and I went down to Columbus to see some of her relatives. It so happened that Ohio State was hosting Wisconsin on that weekend. I went to the historic horseshoe on the Olentangy River, bought a ticket and sat on the very top row next to a guy who just loved the Buckeyes. They won on a cold, wet day.
Shea Stadium (Queens, New York)
In June 1974, I was in New York for the first time. I would rather have seen the Bronx Bombers at Yankee Stadium, but I settled for Mets-Reds at Shea. I went with a homo guy named Craig Eubanks of Aiken, South Carolina. Favorite memory: Taking a photo of the opening pitch—Tom Seaver to Pete Rose.
Cobo Arena (Detroit, Michigan)
During my freshman year at UT, I went up to Michigan where the family had recently moved. It was Christmas Day 1971, and my father really did not want to go but he had promised. I dragged him to downtown Detroit, a place many suburban people avoided at night. We did not get mugged, and we saw the Pistons, with Bob Lanier and Jimmy Walker, play a team whose identity I have forgotten.
Tiger Stadium (Detroit, Michigan)
The parking lot at Tiger Stadium was a wild place, let me tell you. I visited this historic venue twice in the early 1970s. The first instance was a baseball game between the Tigers and the Oakland A’s that was canceled due to rain; at least I got to see Joe Rudi, Reggie Jackson, Sal Bando et al. standing in the visitors’ dugout. The other was a football game between the Lions and the Cincinnati Bengals.
Three Rivers Stadium (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)
I went to “the Burgh” in 1999 to see where Eileen Brown had grown up. The Pirates were hosting the Cleveland Indians in an inter-league game, so I moseyed on over. Cleveland fans were out en masse and saw their team win, with Bartolo Colon on the mound. The stadium was in bad shape because its 30-year existence was nearly over. Separate stadiums were already being built for the Bucs and the Steelers. Three Rivers was imploded in 2001.
Folsom Field (Boulder, Colorado)
I visited Leeny in Boulder in 2000. My trip coincided with the Texas-Colorado football game which the Longhorns won easily. Folsom Field opened in the same year (1924) as Memorial Stadium, but I felt rather smugly that the Buffs’ home was a pipsqueak little thing compared with ours. I also remember walking on that campus, looking up at the magnificent Flatirons—part of the Rocky Mountain range—and wondering how CU students could concentrate amid such beauty.
Pepsi Center (Boulder, Colorado)
A few hours after watching UT whack CU in football, I adjourned to the university’s basketball arena which doubled as home to the women’s volleyball team. Their girls beat ours—big deal.
Commonwealth Stadium (Lexington, Kentucky)
I saw every one of the University of Kentucky’s home football games in 1977. The stadium was only four years old at the time and located in a rather remote part of the campus.
Rupp Arena (Lexington, Kentucky)
Eileen accompanied me to numerous UK basketball games in the ’77 season, and I think the Cats won them all. Just as the university had a new football facility, Rupp Arena—seating capacity: 23,000—was in its second year of existence. Leeny and I also went there for a pro exhibition game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Milwaukee Bucks.
Memorial Coliseum (Lexington, Kentucky)
We went to one game at UK’s “old” gym, which most schools would die for. The femme Wildcats were playing a team whose identity I have long since forgotten. I soaked up the history of Adolph Rupp and his players such as Cliff Hagan, Cotton Nash, Pat Riley and Dan Issel. Multiple national championship banners were hanging there, as well as at Rupp Arena.
Kingdome (Seattle, Washington)
At the wheel of a driveaway car, I went 2,100 miles from Dallas to Seattle in May 1982. Upon arrival in that beautiful city, I was pleased to learn that the Seattle Supersonics would encounter the San Antonio Spurs the following night. I was there, and quite close to the court. This building, home also to the baseball-playing Mariners and the football-playing Seahawks, was an eyesore. It was razed in 2000.
Daegu Baseball Stadium (Daegu, Korea)
My first year in Korea, I was living in Daegu. I attended one baseball game, which cemented the Samsung Lions as my team here. The stadium was smaller than what you would find in MLB back in the States, but the fans’ enthusiasm was better—much better.
Olympic Stadium (Seoul, Korea)
During my first visit to Korea in 1994, I made sure to visit this facility which is where track & field, and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1988 Olympics had been held. It was also where we finished the Seoul International Marathon in 2009 and 2010.
Jamsil Stadium (Seoul, Korea)
Just a stone’s throw from Olympic Stadium, this was the site of the baseball games in the ’88 Olympiad. I have seen the Doosan Bears and LG Twins numerous times at Jamsil, easily the largest in the Korean Baseball Organization. The Bears and Twins will move into a newer, fancier stadium in Seoul in September 2011.
Munhak Baseball Stadium (Incheon, Korea)
The SK Wyverns play at this facility, located adjacent to 50,000-seat Incheon Munhak Stadium where soccer games are held. I rode the subway a heck of a long way to get there in the summer of 2009, but I honestly do not recall the Wyverns’ opponent.
Suwon Civic Stadium (Suwon, Korea)
This stadium, built in 1971, is where I and 10,000 others started and finished the Gyeonggi Marathon in April 2011. The track is nice, but it gets little use as soccer dominates.
Daegu Stadium (Daegu, Korea)
I started and finished the 2008 Daegu Marathon there. I was back in July 2011 to witness the World Track Championships. It was a fine setting for such a big-time meet, with green mountains rising over one end of the stadium. I sat with my friend Jin-Soo and saw some very good athletes—most notably Oscar Pistorius. This South African, who runs on high-tech blades instead of lower legs and feet, did pretty well in the 400-meter heats.
Seoul World Cup Stadium (Seoul, Korea)
The starting and finish line for Seoul Sports 10K (November 13, 2011) was just outside this stadium.
Other facilities I have been to but in which I did not actually see a sports event include Michigan Stadium (Ann Arbor, Michigan), Wallace Wade Stadium, Cameron Indoor Stadium and Durham Athletic Park (Durham, North Carolina), Kenan Stadium and Carmichael Auditorium (Chapel Hill, North Carolina), Eddie Robinson Stadium (Grambling, Louisiana), Jones Stadium (Lubbock, Texas), Johnson Coliseum (Nacogdoches, Texas), Bobcat Stadium (San Marcos, Texas), Sun Bowl (El Paso, Texas), Robertson Stadium and Summit (Houston, Texas), Cowboys Stadium (Arlington, Texas), Olympia Stadium (Detroit, Michigan), Civic Arena (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), Fenway Park and Boston Garden (Boston, Massachusetts), Vaught-Hemingway Stadium (Oxford, Mississippi), Stanford Stadium (Palo Alto, California), Razorback Stadium and Barnhill Arena (Fayetteville, Arkansas), Yahoo Dome (Fukuoka, Japan), Mokdong Stadium and Hyochang Stadium (Seoul, Korea), Cheongsong Stadium (Cheongsong, Korea) and Bird’s Nest (Beijing, China).
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