Duke's Football Dud

Official Review by Joshua Guiher, Stadium Journey Regional Correspondent

Wallace Wade Stadium was built in 1929 and lights were added in 1984. The stadium is built as a horseshoe design, with the scoreboard located at the open end of the stadium. The largest crowd ever was on November 19, 1949 when 57,500 watched Duke play North Carolina. The current configuration of the stadium holds 33,941.

Food & Beverage    4

For a small stadium, the design allows for plenty of concessions. The actual concession buildings are small and don't have much to offer, but there are lots of temporary structures from local companies that provide a great variety of food.

My only real complaint was that if you wanted something specific, there was often only one stand selling that item so you had to walk around to find what you wanted to eat.

Offerings included burgers ($5) at a stand called Andy's Burgers. They also had chips ($1) and 20-ounce bottles of Coca-Cola products ($3). For dessert, I tried the mini donut stand, $5 for a baker's dozen. This stand also had coffee ($2/$3), hot cocoa ($2/$3), mocha ($4) and sweet tea ($4).

Atmosphere    3

The atmosphere was one where the fans wanted to believe in the team, but it seemed like every time Duke was about to gain momentum in the game, they would turn the ball over or allow a big play on defense and the fans would murmur around about the lack of consistent play.

There was nothing noteworthy when it came to the band or piped in music. The mascot also didn't spend a whole lot of time interacting with the fans.

Neighborhood    2

Driving around was a bit difficult because a few roads were closed down to through traffic around the campus. I wound up eating at a chain called Cook Out where you can get a full meal for under $5. I recommend the platter where you get a sandwich and two sides.

Fans    3

The fans cheered for the team, but not consistently. It was like they never gave full support. Every bad play resulted in sighs and disbelief. The student section was very small. So small that I would guess they draw more to a basketball game than they do for football.

Access    3

It took me a while to figure out parking as most lots on campus were $10, but I found plenty of spaces on Lewis Street that were free and an easy walk to the stadium. The walk was about a mile and took me through a beautiful garden, around a small pond and past Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Getting into the stadium was fairly easy and I was able to bring my entire camera bag without a problem. My general admission seat allowed me to sit anywhere in the closed in end zone, which was nice because you could decide if you preferred to sit down low or up high, and allowed for me to avoid some of the kids running around wildly.

Bathrooms were a hike from my seat and not very nice. They are the sole reason I did not award access a four star.

The concourse was fairly easy to move around, but due to the design was a bit uneven. The concourse level almost had a carnival or fair type of feeling to it.

Return on Investment    2

Football just does not seem to be the preferred sport by either the administration or fans at Duke. There is not much investment into the stadium to make it nice or add more bathrooms or proper concessions. The program just is not on par with other Atlantic Coast Conference teams.

Extras    2

The campus is beautiful and worth walking around so I gave an extra point here. The other extra point is for some of the activities that took place for kids in the Krzyzewskiville area.

Final Thoughts

With North Carolina and North Carolina State both being located within 30 minutes, it seems like Duke has just decided to concentrate on basketball and allow the football team to lag behind their local rivals. If you are in the Raleigh/Durham triangle area, you are likely going to enjoy a game at one of the other schools over Duke.