Qualcomm Stadium: Rise And Fall
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- Опубликовано: 16 ноя 2020
- The Story of Qualcomm Stadium from its beginnings to its end...
Info Courtesy: Wikipedia, nbc sports, Washington Times, San Diego Union Tribune
Images are used under Fair Use 
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Yes I am aware that this stadium is currently called SDCCU Stadium, for purposes of familiarity and simplicity it is referred to primarily as Qualcomm in this video.
Let's just call it "The Murph".
@@brianearley5838 Jack Murphy Stadium AKA The Murph.
As a younger San Diegan, calling Qualcomm is just fine. The replies above me are also good names too, the Murph holds just as much weight.
@adsfsadf asdfasdf still the Murph. Jack Murphy Stadium, San Diego California.
Im Glad my Green Bay Packers ARE the only team in the NFL who are owned by our fans instead of a GREEDY private owner who sells out the football fans by moving the team to another city and state for more money and a better stadium deal as happened to San Diego, Oakland, and St Louis. That's why our Packers football team is the envy of the NFL because its publicly owned by the people of Wisconsin instead of a GREEDY private owner who otherwise would move the football team in his own interest.
The Chargers should always be in San Diego.
I CONCUR! Coming from a Los Angeles Resident.
I agree
They might return since they can't fill up Galaxy stadium now imagine the new stadium.
It’s just seems biblical for them to stay in San Diego nice people great community true supporters. LA is rams/raiders supporters
@@apejr6630 I love the Murph.
The Chargers abandoned San Diego for a city that doesn't even want them. What a shame.
Like someone leaving they're wife for the mistress lol
As a native Angelino I can definitely say that there is very little love here for the Chargers. Rams and Raiders have all the support here. Hell the Cowboys have way more fans here than the Chargers. It’s really too bad seeing as San Diego really seemed to have a lot of love for that team.
@@LIFEWITHTHEJONESES1 EXACTLY!
It’s ok because we have the Padres coming up this season
@@bigben3089 So much love that about 90% of the people who showed up to Qualcomm were fans of the other team.
Growing up in San Diego as a kid I’ll always remember the spiral ramps to get to your seats. The numerous monster jam and super cross events that took place there. It really is a shame that they weren’t able to find a different resolution
villen. 2. Thank you!!! Hell yes I remember bc the turf started becoming a huge issue.
Indeed
Jack Murphy Stadium always looked great on TV. Middle of winter with fans drinking beer in short sleeves always made me jealous while I was freezing my butt off in the midwest.
The only place you could probably get that midwest style cold in California is toward places like San Bernardino and the IE, or Lancaster.
I really hope the Chargers move back to San Diego, La Chargers still doesn't feel right.
The charges don't deserve San Diego
No, I think San Diego doesn’t deserve the Charges and Spanos’ nonsense
So he'll move right back after San Diego St builds their own football stadium? What a sleazy thing to do.
@@gemini-mg6sc it's not like San Diego State will build luxury suites, which NFL owners thrive for. . .right??
Maybe if they do bad, but I have a feeling that they won't
It used to be Eli Manning was the most hated football name in San Diego. It's now the Spanos family.
We don't care anymore that the Chargers are in L.A.
San Diego State is building a new stadium of their own, without the greed of the Spanos'.
Nah, I've seen some die hard Charger fans on Reddit still stick with them even if they'd isn't like the move.
Eli Manning - "I put that shit on everything!"
@@Kevin-it4fh I think the LA Chargers might give the rams a run for their own money as the most popular LA team because they have Justin Herbert who is super talented and other young talent. It may not look good right now for the Chargers but they can go to the super bowl if they build around Herbert
Go Aztecs!
If you are old enough to remember when it was Jack Murphy stadium
Yup! Been to both.
Greg's Channel. I'll do you one better, do you remember when the KGB Sky Shows were held there, day long concerts b4 the fireworks. Yep I'm that old-- not sorry, but sorry as hell it's come to this.
@@lynetteharris2509 if you are that old what basketball team started in San Diego ? My family go back to 1926 in this city
Ah, so many memories. The first football game played there in August of 1967 was the Lions vs. the Bolts. I was a half time participant from Boy Scout Troop 245. The Lions mauled the Chargers that day so we consoled ourselves by breathing helium from the balloons they gave us. I actually saw the Padres win a game there in 1969 and also saw Satchel Paige pitch in an old timer's game. I watched Marshall Faulk score his first college TD there and enjoyed watching the great ones like Alworth, Seau, Fouts, and L.T. My best memory? Sitting in the left field bleachers when the Padres won the third game of their series against the Cubs for their first pennant. One weekend I went to an Aztec football game on Saturday night and then a Padres game on Sunday less than 24 hours later. It was an amazing place, but now it's gone forever.
Drive past it everyday and with every section that gets torn down, a piece of me goes with it 😓
I never experienced it but I’d imagine my grandpa feels the same seeing it not there anymore
@@padre619 zzzzzzzz
This stadium is the story of my life. Grew up in the 60’s going toAfl games at SD stadium- was at the first chargers event in 67 - an open house on the field to sell tickets that August. I went to the first Padres game in 68 - the tribune took our picture even -me and Kirk and ivan. Saw arl games. The first Monday game , every nfl playoff game, Padres galore and the Aztecs. Tony Gymn . Caminetti, Wiggins, Colbert. And now it’s just all forgotten and means nothing. Or so it seems.met my wife even. Where has the time gone?
Dean Spanos is getting what he deserves.
what? Justin Herbert?
Dean Spanos is shit
"Fuck you, Spanos!" - UrinatingTree
Your hate should also be directed towards the people of the city of San Diego ..they voted down measure C back in the day ..small minded and visionless ..the people of San Diego let the new stadium and Chargers leave ..not realizing the economic positives that would be coming as a result of the new stadium ..
@@freedomtrucker2332 why should the city pay for it? Spanos is a billionaire.
The city of San Diego had a nice replacement stadium proposal right next to the old one, yet the Chargers thought they were too good for the site and wanted one in the downtown area instead. The voters said hell no. Mind you the team had losing records for most of those years.
Great point. Plus with my Sister and other family out in SD since the Mid 1990's, actually the now former Jack Murphy/Q location is not that far from Downtown SD. In normal traffic (not counting game days off course)it is no more than 20 minutes away on the Freeway. There are many NFL Stadiums much farther or not even in the City limits i.e Jets/Giants, Cowboys, Pats.
Plus that old Chargers home had a very good light rail rapid transit station stop that is also about 20-30 minutes ride to both the Gaslamp and Downtown location. The proposed Downtown SD location Spanos wanted for the new stadium by or next to Petco Padres Park would have a disaster since there is only 1 major freeway (Interstate 5)which is already very busy down there.
Honestly Spanos all along never wanted to stay in San Diego. If not for lease agreements, he would have left town maybe 10 years earlier than in 2016. So keep that in mind for those of you who think the SD residents are not good NFL fans. They loved the Bolts just hated Spanos.
But putting it on the other side of the library next to Petco would have cleaned up one of the few areas in the downtown area that is / was in desperate need of attention.
@@trevornott2488 Yes but at a much higher cost to the city and taxpayers. Also there were traffic concerns. Chula Vista begged the Chargers to take some of their undeveloped land in Eastlake and Chargers said it was too far away!
I see a few comments talking about it would’ve been nice putting it on the side of the library and it would’ve cleaned up that area but also keep in mind do you know how long it was going to take to remove and relocate all those people in that area, then tear down that area, then build You really think Spanos wanted to wait that long. He knew what he was doing. The proposal for the new stadium next to the old one was just fine he just felt He was too good for it. He wanted to be next to the Padres But what happened when they built Petco and how much did it cost us taxpayers when they said it wasn’t going to coast the tax payers from city of San Diego nothing and what happened The people of SD didn’t want to fall in that trap again So disappointing the Chargers should’ve stayed in San Diego and I’m not even a charger fan Spanos did the city wrong but I love my Padres #JackMurphy🤎💛 #TheMurph #TheQ #Qualcomm
@@BigToro32 Maybe if the Chargers had expressed a desire for downtown from the beginning, things would've been different, but they waited for years after the city had endorsed a new stadium in Mission Valley complete with architectural drawings. There were press conferences showing the plans. The Chargers gave no indication they were unhappy with things until the last minute. This forced the city to scramble to try to workout the much more complicated issues of downtown.
Remember the bats in the view level? Always a cool sight during Padres night games. It took about an hour and a half from San Ysidro to the Q via trolley. It was always worth it. Those 60,000+ crowds on Saturday nights for baseball where awesome, especially during Trevor Time. Bottom 8th most people looked at the bullpen down the left field line and hoped for no more Padre runs just to hear Hells Bells. Good times.
The Chargers just don't belong in LA.....period.
THE RAIDERS BELONG IN LA
@@davidkitterman5258 bro y'all literally have a field on wheels in sin city☠️
@@davidkitterman5258 nah y’all belong in Oakland ... I fucks with the Vegas vibe too
@@kingforte9246 The Raiders don’t belong in Oakland. They left that shit hole twice. If Al Davis wouldn’t gotten greedy in LA, he would’ve gotten his palace earlier.
@@davidkitterman5258 you mean so they can not fill the stadium like they did when they were in LA? No. So glad they didn’t get the green light to move back.
Will never forget that 17 foot outfield wall. Night games would see Home Runs turn into outs due to the damp weather. Lots of baseball memories for me there.
That original wall was a monster. Think how many homer runs Nate Colbert would have hit in his prime.
My favorite part of this whole fiasco was the Chargers mascot Boltman addressing the city council in full uniform.
You didn’t mention that the San Diego Fleet played their after in 2019 for the very short lived Alliance of American Football (AAF)
Went to two of their games. Was a good time. Tickets were only $20 as well.
Ironically, the 1997 expansion sections were demolished first. It was nice to see the Murph in its old glory for one last time.
Wow so first it was goodbye to the Chargers when they moved to Los Angeles. Now it's goodbye to the stadium as it's been demolished?! Very disheartening me.
Almost fully demolished now.
Chargers should have stayed in San Diego!
My first Raider Game was there. Great memories 😢
I am a San Diego native and always have been a Charger fan. The first pro game I saw was the Chargers vs. the Oilers in Balboa Stadium.
I was sad that the Chargers had to leave SD. The sad irony is that as long as the Spanos family owns my bolts, I have no confidence that they will finally get a Super Bowl win.
The Spanos family just doesn't seem to care that the most important goal is to win it all.
Sad to see the Q go 😔 so many good memories there
Same man 😔💔 Monster jam shows, the nfl, and the swap meets and car meets 😔
@@KillTheLux I saw my first monster jam here
@@ethanhodges7278 Same with me and that was back in 2007
I drove by it a month ago, that already got the south wall down i believe
My brother and I used to hitchhike down from Linda Vista to the site and building of the new stadium, we would play in the big sewer pipes lol, in 68 my mom worked at the San Diego Union newspaper, Jack murphy himself got me and my brother free season tickets field level along the 1st base line for the last season of the PCL Padres, it was a dream year.
I absolutely love your channel!!! One of the best I have yet to see!!!
I'm working with the demolition company that's tearing it down currently. It's a weird feeling. Especially being a Chargers fan
Irish here - went to this stadium one sunny drunken sunday afternoon in summer '98. The Padres v SF Giants: Baseball I think. Very sunburnt, kinda drunk = my first and only tailgating experience.
San Diego voters made the right decision to NOT pay for a private business facility. ALL cities should vote NO on any professional sports stadiums paid for by tax dollars !!
agreed,
I have the Sign for my old Padres season tickets section now hanging in my garage. A solemn memory of a place I had a lot of good times.
I had so many memories going there to Chargers games
Sport's pundits still often slip and call the Chargers "San Diego."
The multipurpose stadiums will always be my personal favorites, I don’t really have a huge reason or attachment but they always look cool to me
As a San Diego native still here I'll say this. I will never forget Sundays going to The Murph as a kid with my dad for Chargers games. Circa early 1990s. The team... Humphreys, Means, SEAU!!!
The fans, the tail gating, the fun. I can still remember how the touchdown canon would literally scare the shit out of me. I still remember how loud it would get in there and The Rolling Stones - Start me Up song blasting on the speakers. Fast forward to 2 years ago and I went back there for an Aztecs game after years of not attending. Sadly, the place was still the same. Gross outdated concrete design, outdated scoreboard, 420p Jumbo Screen. Huge disappointment that my phone has better resolution than the replay screens inside. Just could not believe no renovation was put in.
Grew up in the OC is the shadow of the Big A. LA was not very safe in those days so my friends and I would drive down to watch NL games all the time. Probably saw 10-15 games from 87-99 every year. Our favorite Padre game was the Sky Show! Saw the Eagles and the Stones there too. When the Rams left, I would drive down and see at least two Charger games as well. Even though SD is not my home town, I have great memories in this venue.
When I went to see the Holiday Bowl there in 2015 or 16, it was obvious the old Murph’s time had passed.
I was lucky to be on the field a few times during charger games. Once even doing a reenlistment ceremony in the middle of the field during half time of a giants game. I'll never forget that stadium
My first chargers game and my last at Qualcomm 💯 memories will never go away
So many memories here. I had season tickets for the Chargers for years. I got to go on the field and met the players :)
Rip Qualcomm 😓⚡🏉
Only went to one game there (Expos/Padres in 1984) but thought it was a nice place to watch a ballgame. Sorry it's gone. (It's sobering to realize that, as a child, I attended the opening day of what is now the third-oldest MLB stadium.)
Thank you for doing this. Let me know if you'd like to collaborate! Keep up the great content sir !
Was there for Bears / Chargers in 2007, week 1. I really liked that stadium. Sad to see it gone.
Would like to see one of these on the Orange Bowl if you get a chance.
Watching the Fins games in the 80s with the palm trees behind the open end of the stadium was fascinating scenery.
I had Chargers season tickets from 2005 until they left. So many great memories...
I have been there a few times when ASU played there in the Sun Bowl and I loved the escalator to the upper decks and it seemed really nice. Also the stadium seemed like it was on a huge plot of land. They never had parking garages, they just had a giant land for parking. I'm sure the land value where Qualcomm stadium was is crazy valuable
The lots were that big because, when it was built, the lots were designed to be a road race course for the SCCA.
Great video man. I didn’t even know SD State is even playing at the Galaxy stadium. That just seem really ironic since the chargers used to play there was well but what do I know
Great video :)
I went to my first and only Padres game there in 1990 whilst on vacation with my Aunt to Southern California and I found the place to be unique and interesting compared to Anaheim Stadium, that I had visited a week before- which at the time hosted both the Rams and the Angels before the Rams moved to St. Louis in 1995- and was renovated in 1997. I found the stadium interesting but not on par to Dodger Stadium (Which to this day I STILL LOVE watching games on TV from) I'd gone to two nights before in LA. I found it interesting because how different the stadium was- because before my only trip to California was to games in Cleveland at the old Cleveland Stadium- and I thought it was a unique place to watch a game in 1990- but that may be me. Nice video btw.
I've lived in San Diego since 1971 & started going to Charger, Padre & Aztec games in 1972. Was a season ticket holder to many Charger & Padres teams. As your middle class, average worker, but a huge sports fan, let me tell you that there was nothing wrong with the Murph. Great views of the field, fantastic variety of food, unbelievable weather to watch the games, unlimited tailgating opportunities & centrally located in the county. Saw lots of rock concerts there as well. My only complaint was we had the worst owners (on both pro teams) & so many losing teams/seasons, there was little to root for.
Great video man, love how you explain how spanos screwed us as well, while paying the same amount he could have used for the stadium to go to LA
San Diego is the largest US city without an NFL team. Quite sad for the city and the county.
There are more people in SD than in Austin TX?
@@donaldpaluga SD is larger than Austin. But to be correct, San Antonio meanwhile is larger than SD and without an NFL-team.
Second should be duval county jacksonville
@@christophaltmann8711 when stadiums are built they include metro areas. So San Diego would have 1,000,000 more people than San Antonio and still no nfl team.
I'll ALWAYS love the Murph. Has so many great times there watching the Aztecs in college. Most of them in the parking lot.
Spanos lost a cold $600mil. & 100k loyal Chargers fans in his move up the 5 Fwy.
Super Bowl XXXII. 1998 my favorite game in Qualcomm stadium 🏟
I have been there so many times... ill miss it
I got to go to Qualcomm and see the Padres in the summer of 98 while I was a recruit at MCRD. The entire 3rd RTBN got to go. They made a big show of us standing and saluting during the National Anthem, how things have changed huh? That remains the only professional game of any kind I've ever been to. It was a cool experience I don't remember who won but I do remember the Drill Instructors let us all have a hotdog and a soda.
So sad whenever i pass by the area left of the stadium. Makes cosco trips way more depressing. Haven't even been there before but it just feels so empty.
As of the making of this video, Los Angeles has two MLS stadiums. The LA Galaxy play at Dignity Health Sports Park, and LAFC play at Banc of California Stadium.
Soccer sucks who cares not enough happens during a game double the size of the goal
Drove by there on Monday. Only thing left standing is the scoreboard and the stands that were on the west side of the stadium.
🙄Well now the city of Oakland, San Diego and St.Louis won't have football for 25 years. That is a whole generation of lost fans including the children. Sports fors bring a lot to the city but too many left liberals and their anti capitalist ideals were able to not get things done 🙄
I grew up watching them in san diego with LT & Philip Rivers awh the good days
"I'm just here to honor Qualcomm" - Matt Harvey
I remember flying to SD to watch The Cowboys Here
The weather was always perfect.. compared to to Texas the Texas Heat!!
Great memories !!
They should keep Oakland Coliseum.
It's one of the greatest multi purpose stadiums and (I think) this one and RFK Stadium are the last 2 remaining places.
But RFK isn't looking good enough anymore.
Angel Stadium is still standing. It shows a stadium can survive a conversion to multipurpose, reconvert to baseball only, and still survive. It's now the 4th oldest MLB stadium behind Fenway, Wrigley and Dodger (Oakland is 5th).
Then there's parks that hosted football teams like Wrigley, where the Bears played for 50 years. The Patriots played in Fenway for 5 years, and numerous other football games were held there as early as 1912. Hell, Oracle Park in San Francisco had a bowl game for over a decade.
Nah, they're both dumps that couldn't support either sport well. Angel and Hard Rock stadium are the best examples out there.
@@thescott7539 Really? Angel stadium is that old? It felt so new though when I was there. Wow.
@@chairmanofrussia The stadium has been through 2 major renovations. The first in 1979-80 to accommodate the Rams, and the second in 1997-98 to remove a lot of what was added for Rams. This means the stadium has been in a state of refreshment many times. There were minor renovations made in 2004, and I'm sure they continue to keep it looking modern.
I can tell you from personal experience that there are places behind the scenes where you can see its age. Though I'd say much of that is from the '80 renovations that still exist rather than stuff from '67.
I saw a few Padres games, back in the day. Didn’t realize the problem with multi use stadiums.
Went to a Padres game one time there. Weird stadium. The tile around the concession stands on the box seat level made it feel like I was buying a hot dog in the bathroom. And the was no way to watch the game while standing in line. It's sad to see legacy stadiums demolished, but Qualcomm has run its course.
I saw her get demolished every day. It was sad.. but I had great moments when I was a kid and I’d go to the game with my dad and then catch a game with my son and of course my pops!! RIP “the Murph”
It’s sad that Qualcomm stadium is gone
One of the best looking stadiums in American sports.
It is now completely gone, torn down slowly between December and May…it’s very weird having it gone!
Can’t believe the owner rather play in a soccer stadium or share one.
Watching it being torn down was a bit horrifying really...it was taking the last bit of true soul out of San Diego. The old original spirit. San Diego has always done the out with the old, in with the new mentality. Tore down so many great historic buildings...left and right. One of the 3 Giant 660' towers should have stayed. That too was part of San Diegos original soul. The old grey castle San Diego high school. The S on cowles mountain. I'm 54 years old going on 55. I was born the summer of 67'. The stadium was something that was born when I was. Chargers, Padres.....Fouts, Kelcher, Winslow, Joiner, Muncie, Hank the Hammer, Jefferson, Chandler......Ozzie Smith, Randy Jones, Rollie Fingers, Kurt Bevaqua, Dave Winfield, Tony Gwynn, Monster trucks, the sky show with live bands......San Diego Stadium is the name that will always live on in my heart...no disrespect to Jack Murphy and all his contributions. But when corporations began naming places....Qualcomm? I'm okay with Petco...it's kind of organic. San Diego has lost so much of it's original soul. Lots of nice things about San Diego, but it's as if we lost a lot too. I still regular the reminants of the original heart and soul....the new stadium frame looks so under powering compared to what the stadium once was. Gonna miss you old gal.
Agree with you 100% I was born in 1967.
Some people may not realize that the Chargers were originally in Los Angeles when they were started as an AFL franchise. They moved to San Diego in 1961 - a little less than two years after they were founded. In some respects, they're returning to the motherland.
I didn’t realize that the NFL and Spanos put up more than 2/3rds of the cost to rebuild. $350 million isn’t a bad amount when you consider the cost of these new Stadiums these days, and they could have probably got it lowered a little with good negotiations.
H3 was the spot for me on sundays, damn I miss tailgating.
The Murph was not your typical bland multi purpose stadium. It had character in its architecture.
Well put
How many commas do you have in your notes?
new update about the stadium, a new one is being built in the same place using the same materials from the old stadium. it's still going to be a multiuse stadium for college sports and professional sports. no update on the size of the stadium but it's estimated to be done by 2022
kinda dumb imo to just demolish a stadium only to build yet another one using the same materials
Sometimes, I hate change that is called 'progress'!
Last time i went to that stadium was in the 90s with my dad saw a motocross event
Saw the Padres v. Rockies here in 1998 and then Monster Supercross in 2011
The bucs won their first and only Superbowl in that stadium back in 03!
1st of their 2
@@chilidavis9894 yes, now 2 lol #GoBucs
I dont think they have one anymore lol 😂
@@diodati-7141 naw, they destroyed the chiefs, its was awesome!!!🤣
My childhood stadium
1978 MLB All Star Game, 1984 World Series, 1993 Mexico vs. Croacia at Full Capacity, and Many Other Events, Sad to see it go, but that´s Progress.
I've been to the Murph to watch the Padres, I always liked it.
Dean Spanos is an absolute plug.
Yes, I admit it, this 31 year old is balling at a piece of my childhood history gone. I will always remember it as Jack Murphy. Many many padres games/chargers games, and my mother graduated an aztec there. Why? Just why? If I had the money and means, I’d somehow, some way, put that right back up there.
I grew up in navy housing right by there in the early 80's, i always called it Jack Murphy stadium
I bet you use to go to Tijuana a lot right for the hoes 😂 tell me the truth it’s only minutes away
@@apejr6630 actually no, i left SD when i was 15 lol
The new stadium they’re building for the Aztecs here in San Diego will most likely be tempting for the chargers to come back to SD
I hope the USFL reboot puts a team in San Diego.
Sad to see it go. I spent many a wonderful time there watching not so wonderful baseball. Every time I went to a Charger game they won.
I work for chargers back then I I miss working there
I went to the last ever Chargers game at Qualcomm (week 17, jan 1 2017 vs Chiefs), it was sad to see more chiefs fans than chargers fans and also a bit dissapointing that I saw Alex Smith instead of Mahomes (who would become the starter at the very beginning of the next season) :/
It didn’t start off that way but more and more people moved here then went to games cheering for their old teams.
This wasn't a bad stadium tbh it was just outdated, I went to the SDCCU holiday bowl in 2017 to see MSU beat WSU and I liked the experience
I live in SD, everyone hates Dean. He wanted the taxpayers to pay for it and not him. Why would we pay for a team to go 4-12 every season? We miss the chargers but no the owners. But hey, we got the padres!
LETS GO DODGERS!!
False - he offered to pay $400-500 million. 14 years and 9 stadium proposals and he had to move, because it was clear the fans in San Diego didn't like or support the team. If they had, they would have agreed to split finance a stadium. Now its too late... the cost of stadiums have gone up another $2-3 billion since 2015. Good job. Let's hope the Padres become good for once in their existence because they are the only pro team SD will ever have, ever again.
@@MrTCHOSS nope not true in about 4-6 years there will be a man named Adam Jauregui who will buy it 😉😉🙂🙂🙃🙃 watch and see and he will make them championship contenders for decades to come I know him trust me it’s gonna happen
@@themasterofbasketball6994 I'd like to see it. And Kroenke would have zero problem letting the Chargers out of their lease. It's just a shame, San Diego could have had a beautiful stadium for about $1 billion, now it will cost them $4 billion. When people talk about how stadiums hurt cities - they don't. It's decisions like waiting 5 years too long that account for the majority of the cost now.
@@MrTCHOSS just wait it’s gonna happen
Some great Holiday college football games back at "Jack Murphy" stadium in the 1980's..
That was my favorite stadium in madden25.
What about memorial stadium in Baltimore, Maryland??
It was a beautiful stadium until it was enclosed in 1997. The view of the hills on the east side was lost, and it was just way too big. Some of those upper deck seats were rarely used, and you couldn't even really see the end zones or the scoreboard from the upper east deck. At least the architecture matched the original stadium.
Towards the end she was looking really tired. Still, I miss the place. There was just something about that Brutalist architecture that made it iconic. Was it the circular ramps? The light ring? The minimalist paired symmetrical column spacing? Wish it could have been saved, or a new stadium built inside the shell of it. I think that was what the Chargers originally wanted to do back in 2003...rebuild the Murph to be a more modern stadium.
It wasn't that Dean Spanos was tired of waiting, but he was trying to hold the city hostage and wanted the stadium built downtown because of the success of PETCO Park. The city can't support a downtown football stadium and wanted to build one on the same site. There were many opportunities for the Chargers to stay in SD but Dean wanted the citizens to pay for a lousy football program amongst other demands!
LC,
The truth is Spanos never wanted to stay in SD. The downtown stadium idea was always a Red Herring. In LA, the franchise would immediately be valued 2X current value or more. He'll sell in few years and real a bigger profit. His loyalty is to Uncle Benjamin.
I miss coming here because of my chargers 😔
So where is the Holiday Bowl going to play?
We lost it. No revenue for us