Located on the northern portion of campus, at 17th Street & East Stadium Way, the stadium opened on October 1, 1966 with a seating capacity of 7,500. It replaced the original Mackay Stadium, formerly located in the bowl containing Hilliard Plaza, the Mack Social Sciences building and the Reynolds School of Journalism. Both stadiums were named for the Mackay family, who were university benefactors in the early years of the school. The stadium currently seats 30,000 and has played to crowds in excess. The field sits at an elevation of above sea level and runs in a NW to SE configuration, with the press box on the southwest sideline.
Renovations
Permanent lighting was installed in 2003 to allow the option of night games. Originally natural grass, synthetic infill FieldTurf was installed in 2000 and replaced in 2010. In 2013, the playing surface at Mackay Stadium was named Chris Ault Field in honor of the former Wolf Packhead coach, College Football Hall of Famer, creator of the Pistol offense in 2004 and for his contributions to Wolf Pack football. A proposal passed by the NevadaBoard of Regents upgraded seating options to the stadium for the 2016 season. This renovation has improved the quality of the fans' experiences but decreased the overall stadium capacity to 26,000. Higher ticket fees in the upgraded sections will repay this $11.5 million bond by 2031.
Attendance
The Wolf Pack football single-season attendance record was set in 1991 with a total of 180,457 fans over nine home games, including playoffs; and the regular-season attendance record was set at 151,081 fans in 1993. The single-season attendance record for a Wolf Pack team with a losing record was set in 2013. 2014 was the third football season to have at least 20,000 fans in attendance at every home game, although multiple seasons were close.
Top 25 single-game attendance records
Top 10 season average attendance records
Top 10 season overall attendance records
Other uses
The Nevada women's soccer team has hosted home crowds with over 1,000 on three occasions. The record was actually set at the Moana Sports Complex in Reno on September 15, 2013, with a record of 1,050 fans in attendance, where the Wolf Pack beat the Sacramento State Hornets, 3–2. Soccer's home-game attendance record at Mackay Stadium is 1,043 fans, as the Wolf Pack beat Wyoming, 1–0, on October 18, 2015. The third-largest Nevada soccer game with over 1,000 fans was also held at Mackay Stadium with 1,007 fans on September 23, 2012, as the Wolf Pack lost 0-3 to #15 California.
