Strawberry Stadium

Location	910 North Hazel Street Hammond, LA 70402, U.S.
Coordinates	30°30′39″N 90°28′6″W / 30.51083°N 90.46833°W / 30.51083; -90.46833
Owner	Southeastern Louisiana University
Operator	Southeastern Louisiana University
Executive suites	Victory Club (116 seats) and five suites (15 seats each)
Capacity	7,408 (2003–present) 8,396 (1970–2002) 7,200 (1937–1969)
Surface	UBU-Intensity Series-S5-M Synthetic Turf (2012–present) SprinTurf (2003–11) Grass (1937–2003)
Construction
Broke ground	May 12, 1937[1]
Opened	September 17, 1937[1]
Construction cost	$144,000[2] ($3.05 million in 2023 dollars[3])
Tenants
Southeastern Louisiana University Lions (NCAA) (1936–present) St. Thomas Aquinas High School (LHSAA) Hammond High School (LHSAA) (1937–1995)

Strawberry Stadium is a 7,408-seat football/soccer stadium in Hammond, Louisiana. It is home to the Southeastern Louisiana University Lions American football team. The stadium also hosts St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic High School football, previously hosted Hammond High School football, and has been the site of numerous play-off games involving other schools from Tangipahoa Parish.

History

The facility was constructed in 1937 as part of Franklin D. Roosevelt's WPA program under Project 1304.^[4] The steel and concrete structure was built to hold 8,500 spectators and included 36 dorm rooms to house 144 students. Additional facilities in the stadium include a social room, café, music rooms, a band room, and dressing rooms for several sports teams.^[1] Construction of the stadium took just 16 weeks, in part due Governor Richard Leche's strong backing of the project. At Leche's direction, workers were pulled from other construction projects in the area to work on the stadium, and crews worked day and night on the facility. With the governor in attendance, the stadium was christened on September 17, 1937, with a game against Louisiana State University.^[5] Reportedly, Leche initially planned to name the stadium after himself, but instead it was named "Strawberry Stadium" to honor local farmers. A plaque on the north end of East Stadium notes Gov. Leche's contribution to the university.^[4]

Renovations

A renovation completed prior to the 2008 football season added club seating, six luxury suites, each accommodating 15 fans, as well as 116 seats outside of the Victory Club. The renovation also increased the press box size.^[6][7] In addition, a new multilevel parking garage for 500 vehicles was constructed to the west of the stadium and connected to it.

Before the 2012 season, new turf was installed after being used at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Notable events

The 1975 Louisiana High School Athletic Association Class AAAA state championship game was contested at Strawberry Stadium. St. Augustine, New Orleans' all-black, all-male Catholic high school, won its first LHSAA championship by defeating Covington High 35–13.