Earl C. Banks Field at W.A.C. Hughes Stadium: Home of the Bears

Earl C. Banks Field at W.A.C. Hughes Stadium: Home of the Bears

1/11/2019 12:00:00 AM

W.A.C. Hughes Stadium is the proud home of the Morgan State University football and track & field teams. The facility is named after William Alfred Carroll Hughes Sr., the 1897 Morgan alumnus who introduced football to the institution during his days as a student. Hughes spearheaded an effort to organize the first football team at his alma mater. The squad played in a vacant lot near the college’s old site on Edmondson Avenue. 
 
Hughes went on to become a prominent Methodist minister in Baltimore, Md. His son, Attorney W.A.C. Hughes Jr., was a member of the first Maryland Commission for Higher Education of Negroes and helped to negotiate the transfer of Morgan State College from the Methodist Church to the state of Maryland. Morgan was a Methodist institution until it was purchased by the state in 1939. Hughes passed away in 1940.
 
Hughes Stadium was officially opened on October 16, 1937. The price tag for the facility was $360,000, and at the time, it was considered one of the preeminent facilities in all of black college football.
 
The Bears opened the stadium with a bang, defeating Lincoln University (Pa.) 19-6 in front of 5,468 Bear faithful on a crisp fall afternoon. The Bears went on to post a perfect 7-0 record that season and would make Hughes Stadium one of the most feared venues in the nation for many opponents over the next several decades.
 
Legendary Morgan State coaches, Eddie Hurt (1929-59) and Earl Banks (1960-73),  built a football dynasty during their tenures. The Morgan State juggernaut claimed 19 conference championships during the Hurt/Banks era. No less than four members of the NFL Hall of Fame sharpened their skills at Hughes Stadium. Len Ford (Cleveland Browns), Roosevelt Brown (New York Giants), Leroy Kelly (Cleveland Browns) and Willie Lanier (Kansas City Chiefs) all played college football at Hughes Stadium.
 
The facility also hosted track & field meets and was home to some of the most gifted athletes in the sport. Eddie Hurt built a track & field dynasty that rivaled the success he had on the gridiron. MSU built a storied track & field tradition that included conference championships and world-class athletes.
 
seating

 A $14 million renovation of Hughes Stadium was completed in 2001. The renovation included a state-of-the-art scoreboard, complete with a video display screen. Additional amenities include lights, a sound system, a three level press box, coaching stations, radio and TV broadcasting areas, and a state-of-the-art drainage system. Other building in the stadium complex include modern team rooms, officials’ rooms and storage space.
 
In 2017, Morgan State University selected Daktronics (NASDAQ-DAKT) of Brookings, South Dakota, to design, manufacture and install new LED video displays and an audio system at Hughes Stadium.

hughessummer19The new end zone display at Hughes Stadium measures 24 feet high by 30 feet wide featuring 15HD pixel layout for exceptional image quality and contrast with wide angle visibility bringing a great view and exciting experience to fans in every seat.
  
These main video displays will feature variable content zoning which allows them each to show one large image or to be divided into multiple zones to show any variety of live video, instant replays, up-to-the-minute statistics, graphics and animations, and sponsorship messages. 

A Sportsound® 2000HD audio system will be integrated into the video and scoring system to provide full-range sound reproduction while delivering clear and intelligible speech for a powerful audio experience for Bears fans.

 
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Photo/Video Policy
Professional cameras and cameras with telephoto or detachable lenses longer than the width (base) of the camera are prohibited in MSU athletic venues. Only those credentialed by the MSU Athletic Communications Office will have the right to use such equipment. Flash photography, video cameras, monopods and tripods are also prohibited. MSU event management reserves the right to ask guests to put cameras or video equipment away.

Prohibited Items

  • Noisemakers including thunder sticks, musical instruments, whistles, air horns and boom boxes
  • Weapons or projectiles
  • Alcoholic beverages
  • Glass or metal containers of any size
  • Hard or soft sided coolers in the seating areas
  • Plastic drink containers (except 2 liters or less with factory seal intact)
  • Boxes or wrapped packages of any size
  • Unsliced fruits or vegetables
  • Animals (other than service animals required because of a disability)
  • Balls or toys
  • Laser pointers
  • Poles or sticks
  • Unauthorized video cameras, monopods or tripods
  • Skates, skateboards, scooters or bicycles
  • Strollers in the seating areas

 


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