Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium in Columbia, Missouri, is the home of the Missouri Tigers football team. It opened on October 2, 1926, and is dedicated to the 112 University of Missouri students and alumni who died in World War I. The playing surface has carried the name of legendary coach Don Faurot since 1972, which is why the venue is usually called by both names.
The stadium turned 100 in 2026, and Missouri marked the milestone with a $250 million project that enclosed the north end zone. Its official capacity is now 63,609, making it the third-largest sports facility in Missouri by seating capacity, behind The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis and Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.
Stats at a Glance
- Team(s): Missouri Tigers football (NCAA, SEC)
- Location: 600 E. Stadium Blvd., Columbia, Missouri
- Opened: October 2, 1926
- Capacity: 63,609 (as of the 2026 season)
- Record attendance: 75,298 vs. Penn State, October 4, 1980
- Original cost: About $350,000 (per Mizzou Athletics)
- Playing surface: AstroTurf (2021 to present)
- Famous for: The Rock M and the “MIZ-ZOU” chant
A Century of Tigers Football
Construction began with a December 1925 groundbreaking, and the first game on October 2, 1926 was a scoreless tie with Tulane. The field was so muddy that sawdust and tanbark were reportedly used in place of sod. The stadium grew in stages. About 5,000 seats were added to the west stands in 1949 and another 5,000 to the east stands in 1950, a final expansion of the original horseshoe came in 1965, and the south end zone was enclosed with roughly 10,800 permanent seats in 1978.
Missouri joined the Southeastern Conference in 2012, and the stadium was upgraded to match. The Tiger Deck and a new club area on the east side were finished in 2014, and a $98 million south end zone complex followed in 2019. The surface has changed too: it was natural grass for most of its first six decades, then Omniturf (1985–1994), grass again, FieldTurf (2003–2020) and now AstroTurf, installed for the 2021 season.
Traditions and the 2026 Makeover
The Rock M, a huge stone “M” on the hillside at the north end, was built in 1927 by freshmen using leftover construction rock and measures about 90 feet wide and 95 feet tall. The “MIZ-ZOU” chant is said to have begun in 1976 after a win over Ohio State, when cheerleaders wanted something as memorable as Ohio State’s “OH-IO.”
The $250 million north end zone project fully enclosed the stadium and added premium seating, including new suites, outdoor Tigers Dens and a club space that can host up to 500 people. It lifted official capacity to 63,609 ahead of the 2026 season.
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Faurot Field FAQs
When did Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium open?
It opened on October 2, 1926, with a scoreless tie against Tulane. The field was named for Don Faurot in 1972, and the stadium itself is a memorial to Missouri’s World War I dead.
How many people does Faurot Field hold?
Official capacity is 63,609 as of the 2026 season, after the $250 million north end zone project. The all-time record crowd is 75,298, set on October 4, 1980, against Penn State.
What is the Rock M at Faurot Field?
It is a large stone “M” on the hillside beyond the north end zone, about 90 feet wide and 95 feet tall. Freshmen built it in 1927 from leftover stadium construction rock, and it remains one of the best-known landmarks in Mizzou athletics.
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Photo: Lectrician2 / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.