CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WAND) - Memorial Stadium has been around since the 1900s, and people are still adding so much to its history.
Many people still often forget the home of the Illinois Fighting Illini one of the original large stadiums in the country.
"In today's world, there's no way you can build a stadium like this for the cost in terms of cost, limestone and a lot of the work that was put into this," said sports information director Kent Brown.
It was made in honor the the World War I soldiers, and when someone goes to the top floor, they can see names engraved on the walls for those who have served.
Additionally, one can see how more people have been honored throughout the years, like the Red Grange statue that can be passed at an entrance.
"It's a great piece of art that shows even though it's still, it shows a lot of action and Red's performance against Michigan is still one of the greatest performances of the history of the game," said Brown.
However, there is also one piece that not a lot of people know about. One of the main reasons is because it is in a private area and only staff can see it. It's simply because it's the only place an art gallery would fit for Bob Zupke.
"We have about 20 to 25 pieces of artwork from him," said Brown.
He said many people don't know that Zupke also liked to paint. He finds it interesting to see where his other passions were, and to see how the entire stadium has changed over the years.
"There's a lot of great tradition here," said Brown.
