Notre Dame Stadium

About Notre Dame Stadium

Notre Dame Stadium sits at the heart of one of the most beautiful college campuses in America, in the small community of Notre Dame, Indiana, about four miles north of downtown South Bend and 95 miles east of Chicago. At 77,622 seats, it’s not the biggest stadium in college football — but it might be the most storied.

Known as The House That Rockne Built, the stadium was designed in 1929 at the direction of legendary coach Knute Rockne, who insisted that every seat be as close to the field as possible. Osborn Engineering — the same firm behind Yankee Stadium and the original Comiskey Park — drew up the plans, modeling it after Michigan Stadium on a smaller scale. Construction took just six months. Rockne never saw a full season in his stadium — he died in a plane crash on March 31, 1931.

The $400 million Campus Crossroads project (2014-2017) transformed the stadium’s exterior by anchoring three buildings to the south, east, and west sides: O’Neill Hall, Corbett Family Hall, and Duncan Student Center. Together they added 800,000+ square feet of academic, student life, and hospitality space. Inside the bowl, bench seating was widened from 16 to 18 inches, actually reducing capacity from 80,795 to 77,622. The field was converted from natural grass to FieldTurf in 2014 after 84 seasons on real turf.

And then there’s Touchdown Jesus. The Word of Life mural on the south wall of the Hesburgh Library — 134 feet tall, 68 feet wide, 324 granite panels — is visible from inside the stadium and appears in every television broadcast of a Notre Dame home game. Its arms raised, it looks like Christ is calling a touchdown.

Getting to Notre Dame Stadium

Public Transit

South Bend isn’t a transit metropolis, but the options on game day are solid. South Bend Transpo runs a free Game Day Express shuttle every Notre Dame home Saturday.

Free flag-down courtesy cart service, driven by green-jacketed Guest Services staff, operates on campus Friday and Saturday before the game.

Driving + Parking

Notre Dame is accessible from I-80/I-90 (Indiana Toll Road). GPS users should enter “2010 Moose Krause Circle, Notre Dame, IN 46556.”

Campus lots open at 8 AM. General public parking is available at White Field, Burke Golf Course, Saint Mary’s College, and Holy Cross College for $20-40. Tailgating is a major tradition — lots fill up early, and the scene across campus on a Saturday morning is something every college football fan should experience. Gas grills are allowed; charcoal and deep fryers are not.

Rideshare

Uber and Lyft serve the Notre Dame campus. Post-game pickup is at the Trader Joe’s parking lot south of campus — set your destination to 1140 Howard Street, South Bend, IN 46617.

Pro tip: Pre-game drop-offs work smoothly. Post-game is the challenge — 77,000 fans all leaving at once. Give it 20-30 minutes after the final whistle for the initial crush to clear.

From the Airport

History of Notre Dame Stadium

Knute Rockne wanted a stadium that put fans on top of the action. He worked with Osborn Engineering to design a bowl patterned after Michigan Stadium but more compact, using 2 million bricks, 400 tons of steel, and 15,000 cubic yards of concrete. Sollitt Construction of South Bend broke ground in April 1930 and finished in six months at a cost of over $750,000.

• First Game (October 4, 1930): Notre Dame defeated SMU 20-14. “Jumping Joe” Savoldi scored on a 98-yard kickoff return — the first hero of the new stadium.
• Catholics vs. Convicts (October 15, 1988): No. 4 Notre Dame upset No. 1 Miami 31-30. Pat Terrell knocked down a two-point conversion with 45 seconds left. Notre Dame went on to win the national championship.
• Game of the Century (November 13, 1993): No. 2 Notre Dame upset No. 1 Florida State 31-24 before 80,795 fans. The first remote ESPN College GameDay broadcast.
• The Bush Push (October 15, 2005): No. 1 USC escaped 34-31 when Reggie Bush pushed Matt Leinart into the end zone on 4th-and-goal with 3 seconds left.
• $50 Million Expansion (1994-1997): Added an upper bowl with 21,000+ seats, pushing capacity to 80,795.
• First Concert (October 20, 2018): Garth Brooks performed the first concert in the stadium’s 88-year history, selling out in under two hours.
• NHL Winter Classic (January 1, 2019): Boston defeated Chicago 4-2 before 76,126 fans at Notre Dame Stadium.
• $400 Million Campus Crossroads (2014-2017): Three buildings anchored to the stadium’s exterior, adding 800,000+ sq ft of academic and hospitality space.