NFL: Multi-purpose stadiums nearly extinct

Take a close look at the surface beneath the feet of the Oakland Raiders pictured above.  That’s dirt — as in infield dirt on the field that the Raiders share with the Oakland Athletics baseball team.  With a month left in the baseball season, that field will have the same look for at least two Raiders regular season games, and as many as four if the playoff contending A’s go deep into the postseason.  Then, what was once a standard September look in the NFL, could go the way of the single-bar face mask and disappear forever.

The Raiders are in the last year of their lease at O.co Coliseum, the last multi-purpose stadium left in the NFL.  They can sign an extension, but also could wind up anywhere next season, including Los Angeles.  Remember they played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum between 1982 and 1994, before heading back to what was then called the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.  The Raiders were an original tenant when it first opened in 1966.  At the time, multi-purpose stadiums were pretty much the rule.  It made sense.  Why waste a perfectly good stadium on only 10 or so football games a year?

The first of this type was D.C. Stadium, which opened in 1961.  It was later changed to Robert F. Kennedy Memorial stadium after his assassination in 1968.  The Redskins played there until 1996 and it housed the Senators until they left for Texas after the 1971 season.  It still stands and was used by the Nationals for three years after their move from Montreal in 2005.  There was a cool scenario in 1969 inside RFK when Redskins coach Vince Lombardi had an office next to the one Senators manager Ted Williams had.  Imagine, arguably the greatest football coach of all time, walking next door to ask, arguably the greatest hitter of all time, if he could borrow some scotch tape.

Yankee Stadium was known as the house that Babe Ruth built, but for many years the Yankees shared it with the New York (football) Giants.  Hall of Fame linebacker Sam Huff, who played for the Giants from 1956 to 1963, told the Washington Times, “I shared a locker with Mickey Mantle at Yankee Stadium.  He hit the ball out of sight.  He hit the ball and I hit the ballplayer.”

There was this delicious football/baseball intersection reported by Steve Wulf in the October 6, 1980 issue of Sports Illustrated.  Observing Veterans Stadium the day after the Phillies, in the midst of a pennant race, had produced an extra inning win over Montreal and were led in celebration by an exuberant Tug McGraw, Wulf wrote, “The Phillies were certainly a confident team the next day.  Chasing the slightly larger Philadelphia Eagles out of right field so they could take batting practice.  Linebacker Bill Bergey even did a perfect imitation of McGraw’s frenzy the night before.”

In 1992, we were given Deion Sanders, who played football for the Falcons and baseball for the Braves in Fulton County Stadium.  There’s a myth that he played for both teams on the same day.  Not true.  And on the day in question, neither team was at home.  The truth is, Deion played a Saturday night National League Championship Series game for the Braves in Pittsburgh, before hopping a flight to Miami to play for the Falcons against the Dolphins the next day.  After the game, he flew back to Pittsburgh, put on his baseball uniform, but didn’t play in the game that night.  Two years later the Braves were in brand new Ted Turner Field and the Falcons were playing at the Georgia Dome.  Deion returned as a member of the 49ers and declared the Falcons new home as “the house that Deion built.”  Typical Deion.  The Georgia Dome had been part of Atlanta’s 1996 Olympic plans long before Deion ever put on a Falcons uniform.

A couple of west coast stadiums have had identity crises. Candlestick Park was baseball only when it opened for the San Francisco Giants in 1960.  It became multi-purpose when the 49ers moved there from Kezar Stadium in 1970.  But when the Giants got a new ballpark in 2000, Candlestick Park was changed to football only for the 49ers who stayed through last season.  Anaheim Stadium, also known as “The Big A”, opened for the Angels in 1966, but became multi-purpose when the Rams moved in before the 1980 season.  The Rams split for St. Louis in 1995.  By 1997 it was back to being baseball only.  It’s now called Angel Stadium of Anaheim.

Some may wax nostalgic about the days when NFL and MLB teams shared stadiums, but they really weren’t great days or safe days.  At “The Vet” in Philadelphia, the playing surface was regarded as the worst in sports – basically green felt on top of concrete.  When it had to be converted from a baseball field to a football field, the infield dirt was covered with that green felt.  Baltimore Ravens Coach Brian Billick once refused to let his team play an exhibition game there.  Taking a pre game stroll, Billick almost got stuck between a seam created by the felt covering.  Rather than risk serious injury to his players, Billick sent them home on the train without playing.

Few tears were shed when Veterans Stadium was blown up a decade ago.  As is often the case, the good old days, are not as good as they are remembered.  Infield dirt on your football field is not really anything to feel warm and fuzzy about.  When it goes – good riddance.