A History of Colorado State University Football Stadiums
Colorado State University (CSU) has a rich history of football, and with that, a history of stadiums that have served as the home for the CSU Rams. This article explores the history of these stadiums, from Hughes Stadium to the current Canvas Stadium, highlighting their significance and evolution.
Hughes Stadium: A Home West of Campus
Sonny Lubick Field at Hughes Stadium was an outdoor college football stadium in Fort Collins, Colorado. Located about four miles (6 km) west of the school's main campus, near Horsetooth Reservoir, it was owned and operated by Colorado State University. The stadium occupied a 161-acre (65 ha) site.
Design and Features
Hughes Stadium was situated in a natural oval bowl, with seating on three sides. An open grass berm, not available for seating, was located behind the south end zone. The west stands, which served as the home side, were expanded beyond the bowl and topped by a press box. In 2003, the playing surface was named in honor of then-head coach Sonny Lubick.
Key Moments and Demolition
The inaugural game at Hughes Stadium took place on September 28, 1968, resulting in a 17-12 loss to North Texas State, which was led by defensive tackle Mean Joe Greene. From October 1989 to August 1991, the Rams achieved a school record by winning eight consecutive games at the stadium.
Pre-demolition work commenced in March 2018 with the mitigation of hazardous materials, primarily asbestos. Full-scale demolition began on April 10, 2018. Linnea Wilson and her husband Hal observed the demolition, with Wilson noting, "I guess there were problems with it, but it didn't show."
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The university confirmed plans to develop the 160-acre property, with the expectation that it would be cleared and ready for potential sale by the end of November 2018.
The Transition to Canvas Stadium
In 2013, Colorado State University initiated fundraising efforts for a new on-campus stadium with a capacity of approximately 40,000 seats to replace Hughes Stadium. This project was motivated by significant reductions in state funding for CSU in recent decades. Consequently, CSU aimed to attract more out-of-state students, whose tuition was three times higher than that of Colorado residents.
Funding and Approval
Initially estimated to cost $246 million, the new stadium project was contingent on raising $125 million in private funds by October 2014. However, plans were temporarily suspended due to insufficient fundraising support.
On November 29, 2014, CSU President Anthony A. Frank recommended that the new stadium be approved without meeting the original requirement of raising 50% of the cost in public funds. Frank estimated the cost of a 35,900-seat facility at $195 million, while a 41,200-seat facility would cost $220 million. He also projected that renovating Hughes Stadium to last 30 to 40 years would cost at least $149 million.
Many community members expressed frustration that they did not feel they were being heard at the CSU Board of Governors meeting when final approval was given.
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Construction and Naming Rights
Construction of the new stadium, tentatively named Colorado State Stadium, commenced in May 2015, with an official groundbreaking ceremony held during CSU's home football game against Minnesota on September 12, 2015. After 22 months, the construction of Canvas stadium came to an end.
On April 19, 2018, CSU announced the sale of the stadium's naming rights to Public Service Credit Union (PSCU) for $37.7 million over 15 years. The actual name was not disclosed at the time because PSCU was in the process of rebranding, which was revealed on June 5, 2018, as Canvas Credit Union.
Canvas Stadium: A New Era On-Campus
Canvas Stadium, the current home of the CSU Rams, is a multi-purpose stadium located on the university's campus. The home field of the CSU Rams of the Mountain West Conference, it opened on August 5, 2017, and hosted its first game three weeks later. It replaced Sonny Lubick Field at Hughes Stadium, which had been the Rams' home since 1968.
Design and Features
The $220 million, 727,000-square-foot stadium has proven popular among fans. The return of CSU football games to campus in 2017 brought the pageantry and celebration of Rams game days back to the heart of the university for the first time in 50 years.
All of the Rams’ day-to-day football training facilities and offices are located on the west side of the facility. The stadium also features two VIP areas: The New Belgium Porch in the north end zone and the Orthopaedic & Spine Center of the Rockies Field Club behind the Rams’ bench at midfield, as well as a 270-degree open-air concourse. The Smith Alumni Center and new academic space has been integrated into the design to bring students and faculty into the building year-round, and the stadium clubs, VIP areas and other meeting spaces provide opportunities for non-game-day events year-round.
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Inaugural Season and Attendance
In its inaugural season of 2017, Canvas Stadium drew rave reviews from local and national media, as well national television networks. The Rams set an all-time attendance record with a total of 192,369 fans and a per-game average of 32,062, representing a 16-percent attendance increase from 2016. In the stadium’s grand-opening game on Aug, CSU opened their new stadium by beating Oregon St 58-27.
Naming Rights and Partnerships
The agreement with Canvas Credit Union combined with $20 million given in 2016 to name Sonny Lubick Field brings the total naming rights revenues at Colorado State to $57 million for the stadium.
Beyond Football
Aside from being used for football, Canvas stadium hosts a variety of different events including concerts, meetings and banquets, community and private events, and major public events. In July of 2025, Professional Bull Riders held an event labeled CSU PBR Last Cowboy Standing featuring Cross Canadian Ragweed and Jon Pardi.
Traditions
The cannon, nicknamed “Camatose”, has been used by Colorado State University’s football team since 1920. The cannon itself was built in France in 1918 and has never been replaced by the school.
The Fight Song has been a staple of CSU football since 1910. The current “Colorado State University Fight Song” was written in 1932 by Richard F. Bourne made its debut only a few days after its creation. Over the years there have been multiple fight songs including “Come on Aggie’s” and the “Aggie Boom Song”. The “Stalwart Ram’s” fight song was officially adopted in 1957 after a few minor changes to remove “Aggies” from the song after Colorado A&M became Colorado State University.
A new Canvas Stadium tradition unveiled in 2025 was the third down train horn. Many people have found this new tradition unassuming, stating that it is far too “loud” and “frequent”.
A 450-pound bell was housed at the Old Main Building, and was rung after a CSU Football Victory. The bell was stolen in 1919 and buried for 50 years, then to be unearthed and placed in the Executive Director of the Alumni Association's driveway. Now, the bell is housed in a tower built into the Iris & Michael Smith Alumni Center and continues to ring after victory.
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