Kyle Field adds reinforcements
South end zone receives more steel after fans’ concerns.
— The new south end zone of Kyle Field, opened less than a year ago, held a surprise for fans during Texas A&M’s final home game last season: slight up-anddown movement.
The minor shifting occurred when the stands were packed during A&M’s Thanksgiving game against LSU. A mesmerizing song played at a high volume ostensibly triggered the movement, but it wasn’t the “Aggie War Hymn.” Instead, the techno-pop song “Sandstorm” was the perpetrator, officials claim.
“It’s very technical, but the particular frequency (of ‘Sandstorm’) was the issue,” said Craig Kaufman, project manager for the architectural firm Populous, which designed A&M’s rebuilt stadium.
In response, A&M has reinforced the south end zone stands with additional steel. The south seating area, which holds nearly 27,000, has been safe from the start, officials say.
“It’s a steel structure, so it is going to move a little bit,” said A&M System Vice Chancellor Phillip Ray, who is overseeing the $485 million stadium redevelopment. “We test- ed every single thing you could do.”
A&M is near the end of a massive transformation of Kyle Field, with a final seating capacity of 102,512 — up from 83,000.
The rebuilt stadium is on schedule for completion by the Sept. 12 home opener against Ball State.
According to multiple accounts, the new south end zone slightly bounced from fans’ rhythmic reaction to the song during a break in the on-field action.
The structure did indeed move up and down a few inches, Ray confirmed, but he said it was within the safety parameters of the original design.
Though Ray said he heard from only a couple of fans via email, a post on the fan website TexAgs addressing concerns has more than 120,000 clicks —which A&M took into account. The result? Reinforcement.
The additional cost of adding the steel won’t push the overall project over budget, Ray said, primarily because any extra steel was “allocated from our allotment for this project.”
A&M also has engineered the new stadium to eliminate much of the horizontal movement during the “Aggie War Hymn.” The venue has long been known for its slight swaying during the song, when fans link arms and move back and forth.