Boone Pickens Stadium (formerlyLewis Field), the home of Oklahoma State football, is a far cry from what the school's student body of 1914 ever expected when they named the "Athletic Field" after Laymon Lowery Lewis.

A former dean of veterinary medicine and of science and literature from Oklahoma A&M, Dr. Lewis was one of the most popular figures in the school's history.

In addition to his duties as dean and instructor at A&M, Lewis served as the school's acting president in 1914. He was instrumental in the development of experimental stations around the state and, under his brief administration, A&M established the first school of commerce and marketing in the nation.

"Doctor Lew" was highly respected by the school's student body, which named what is currently Lewis Stadium in his honor prior to 1914. The university's first yearbook was also dedicated to Dr. Lewis in 1914.

While the playing field bore his name (thus two references as Lewis Field and Lewis Stadium), the first grandstand seats were installed in 1920 with 8,000 seats available. The facility originally was positioned in the traditional north-south direction, but switched to east-west to "avoid the strong prevailing winds."

The first addition to the stadium came in 1924 with the first steel and concrete portion of the present stadium built on the south side. During the 1929-30 seasons, 8,000 permanent seats were built on the north side for an overall capacity of 13,000. In 1947 the south stands were increased from 20 to 53 rows and capacity climbed to nearly 30,000. For the first time, a permanent press box was then added.

Prior to the 1950 season, 10,600 more seats were added to the north stands, increasing capacity to 39,000 (including temporary end-zone bleachers). The next expansion started after the 1971 season and included removal of the cinder track, lowering the field 12 feet and adding 20 rows of permanent seats to both sides. This expansion, including a completely artificial turf field, cost $2.5 million and was financed through private donations.

The Coaches Building (east end zone) houses the entire football staff, the office of the athletic director and the Charlie Young Varsity Club Lounge. The building was completed just prior to the start of the 1978 season.

Construction of a spacious and modern press box was completed in 1980 at a cost of $1.8 million. The press box has seating for more than 200 members of the print media, with separate levels for radio/television broadcasters, photographers and VIP seating on the first level capable of handling 300. A modern lighting system for night games was installed in time for the 1985 season and cost approximately $750,000.

The most recent addition was a new playing surface (Astro Turf), installed in July of 1987 at a cost of over $400,000.

Official sellout capacity is listed at 50,614 for the stadium, but SRO availability can push the total attendance higher than the 50,614 figure. The all-time record attendance in Lewis Stadium was 51,458 for the Oklahoma State-Oklahoma game in 1979. That same season, 51,000 were on hand for the OSU-Arkansas contest.

Website: http://www.okstate.com/facilities/boone-pickens-stadium.html