Joan C. Edwards Stadium

The Joan C. Edwards Stadium was first proposed in 1986 to replace Fairfield Stadium. The record attendance was set on September 10, 2010, at 41,382 in a 24–21 overtime loss to West Virginia University. Renovations The expansion of the additional 2,000 seats was completed in July 1994. Six years later, in August 2000, another seating expansion brought the total number of seats to 38,019. The new expansion was completed before the 2000 season opener against SE Missouri St. In 2013, Marshall added four new skyboxes which raised the capacity to 38,227 The record attendance was set on September 10, 2010, at 41,382 in a 24–21 overtime loss to West Virginia University. ==Naming==

On September 4, 1993, the playing surface was named in honor of James F. Edwards, a donor to Marshall University. In November 2003, the stadium itself was renamed to the Joan C. Edwards Stadium, after James Edwards' wife, Joan C. Edwards. The renaming honored the couple, whose combined donations to the university exceeded $65 million. The Shewey Athletic Center on the north side of the stadium on Third Avenue was named for Fred and Christine Shewey, also major donors. The Shewey Athletic Center houses the stadium's locker room facilities as well as offices for both the football team and the athletic department. The stadium is one of two in NCAA Division I named exclusively for a woman (Several other stadiums are named after husband-and-wife pairs.). ==Tenants==

In addition to hosting Marshall football, the NCAA Division I-AA national championship game was held at then-Marshall University Stadium several times in the 1990s, including in 1992 and 1996—the years when the Thundering Herd won the national championship. The stadium also hosted the MAC championship game in 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2002 as well as the 2014 and 2020 Conference USA championship games. In 2010, Kentucky Christian University played three of its home football games at the stadium. == Top 10 attended games ==

File:TheJoan.jpg|Front entrance to stadium File:Mu memorial on the joan.jpg|Memorial located on the front of the stadium File:MarshallStadium2.jpg|Home side, 2008 File:MarshallStadium1.jpg|Visitor side exterior, 2008 File:MUtheJoan crop.JPG|The Joan at dusk, 2009 File:Marshall Cincy.jpg|Marshall vs Cincinnati 2008 Pregame File:UH at Marshall CIMG0316.JPG|Marshall vs. Houston, 2008 File:StudentSectionAtTheJoan.jpg|Pregame as seen from the student section in 2012. The Shewey Athletic Center is seen at the far end of the field. ==See also==