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It's a winner!
Fans flocked to the new Princeton Stadium
for the opening game on September 19: the
27,800-seat facility was sold out.
Opening ceremonies began
at 1:15 p.m. After the national anthem, played by
the University Band, more than 250 varsity football
alumni took the field, marching P-rade-style behind
their class banners to form a double horseshoe
facing the Princeton side of the stands,
representing classes from 1998 to 1927. To a roar
of approval, the current squad made its appearance,
running the length of the horseshoe between the
double line of veterans.
President Shapiro offered
a welcome to all those who came "in such splendid
numbers to help us celebrate … the 1,085th
game in the long history of Princeton football." He
thanked the fans, athletes, benefactors and
volunteers, as well as architect Rafael
Viñoly and associates, "who gave us in this
grand new stadium a work of art, of science, of
intellect, of imagination and of athletic grace,"
and "those many hundreds of workers here in the
stands today, who under the direction of Turner
Construction built for us a stadium that is not
only beautiful, but also superbly crafted."
The stadium, said Shapiro,
"reaffirms our fundamental belief that education in
its highest form must nurture -- as one -- the
mind, the body and the spirit. It will carry
forward our Tiger athletic legacy, not just in
football but in many different sports, and provide
a welcome gathering place for the wide Princeton
community."
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