Description
Today's Crusaders are fortunate to call Fitton Field their home. Storied Fitton is considered to be the finest natural grass facility for viewing and playing a college football game in the Northeast. The first home football game ever played at Holy Cross was a 6-0 defeat of Massachusetts Agricultural College on Sept. 26, 1903. It was not until 1905, however, that the field was dedicated Fitton Field, and again it was a meeting with the Aggies that christened the new field. This time, the Crusaders won 17-0.
Still, the football field was laid out across what is now the baseball field, and it was not until Sept. 26, 1908, that the first game was held at what is now the field's current site. Also in 1908, Holy Cross added new wooden stands to the field, while just four years later a concrete structure replaced many of those seats, thus increasing the seating capacity of the stadium. It was not until 1924 that Holy Cross built the steel structuring that makes up today's stadium.
Prior to the 1986 season, the wooden stands were removed and replaced with aluminum stands and a complete horseshoe design with a capacity of 23,500. In 2016, new sod (a bluegrass blend grown in Maine) was installed, along with new netting.