Shotwell Stadium is a stadium in Abilene, Texas. It was built in 1959, using Rice Stadium as a model. It was initially named the Public Schools Stadium. The first game played in the Stadium was in the fall of 1959. Shortly after the first season, the stadium was renamed Shotwell Stadium, after the late P.E. “Pete” Shotwell, a longtime football coach at Abilene High School.Size and usesShotwell Stadium is primarily used for American football and soccer. The stadium's two concrete grandstands each has a permanent seating capacity of 7,500 people in an all-bleacher configuration. Several semi-permanent metal bleacher structures are located behind the north end zone, allowing for overflow seating in excess of the facility's 15,000 permanent seats. There are also standing room-only areas at the corners of the stadium, raising total capacity to nearly 20,000.Shotwell Stadium is the home field of Abilene High School and Cooper High School. The Abilene High/Cooper High rivalry game is played here every year and always fills the stadium.The stadium was long home to NCAA football. The Abilene Christian University Wildcats football team, currently a member of NCAA Division I FCS, played at Shotwell from 1959 through 2016. ACU will open a new on-campus stadium for the 2017 season.
