Roos Field

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The red field you see before you is Roos Field, formerly known as Woodward Field, home to Eastern Washington Universities Eagles. The vibrant red turf recently added in 2010 has earned the field its nickname "The Inferno". Eastern Washington Universities field was located near the present JFK Library. The stadium facility seen here was completed in 1967. The field was originally named for Arthur C. Woodward, former football coach and head basketball coach for the Eagles from 1927-1928. Woodward was also the head of Eastern's Athletic department from 1927-1950. The field was named in his honor in 1937. The field was renamed in 2010 for former eastern football player and Pro NFL Tackle Michael Roos who donated $500,000 to the renovation project for the stadium. This facility can seat 12,000 football fans of all ages. The Eagles won their inaugural game on the new turf against the Montana Grizzlies in 2010, 36-27. This inaugural game had a record breaking attendance of 11,702 fans who came to watch the Eagles defeat their arch rivals.

There was some debate about the red turf, especially from the Montana Grizzlies and their fans. A quote from an editorial in the Missoula newspaper says "We are hidebound traditionalists, and we know that red fades in the sun. What is EWU going to do when faced with a pink football field? And what if there is a major injury on the field? How will we see how much blood the player lost?" However the Big Sky Conference has no problem with the turf. Eastern is not the only school with different colored turf for their football field. Boise state sports a blue field in support of their team the Broncos.

Another interesting fact about EWU Athletics is that the Eagles were not always the Eagles. Until 1973 Eastern Washington State College was home to the Savages. Because of controversy over the mascot from the Native American Community however the mascot was changed from the Savages to the Eagles when the school officially became Eastern Washington University.