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Hanson Field

Hanson Field in Macomb, IL, home of Western Illinois. Capacity 16,368. Opened 1950.

Hanson Field in Macomb, IL
Hanson Field, Macomb, ILPhoto: IlliniGradResearch, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Capacity
16,368
Opened
1950
Surface
Matrix Turf
Roof
Open air
Elevation
633 ft
Western Illinois here
59–⁠67 games on file since 2003

Since it opened: Western Illinois is 67–⁠72 in home games from the 1975 season on. Our source names a game’s stadium only from 2001, so that count takes every earlier home game not marked neutral and may include a few played elsewhere.

Biggest games here

From the games on file here, 2003 on: title and postseason games, meetings of two ranked teams, upsets by our pregame Elo ratings and the biggest swings in CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.

Crowds season by season

Average and biggest crowd at Hanson Field by season, 2003 to 20260k5k10k15k20k25k2003: 13,050 a game over 5 games; biggest 19,2872004: 12,788 a game over 5 games; biggest 15,9842005: 10,707 a game over 5 games; biggest 14,6032006: 10,701 a game over 5 games; biggest 13,5222007: 12,590 a game over 6 games; biggest 15,6192008: 9,624 a game over 6 games; biggest 14,5612009: 8,946 a game over 4 games; biggest 15,3282010: 12,239 a game over 4 games; biggest 16,3682011: 8,357 a game over 5 games; biggest 14,1682012: 9,649 a game over 6 games; biggest 16,0332013: 5,525 a game over 6 games; biggest 10,2322014: 4,525 a game over 6 games; biggest 9,4452015: 4,472 a game over 4 games; biggest 7,1252016: 4,910 a game over 5 games; biggest 6,7322017: 3,477 a game over 4 games; biggest 5,6312018: 3,945 a game over 5 games; biggest 5,8222019: 3,149 a game over 1 games; biggest 3,1492021: 3,282 a game over 5 games; biggest 5,3852022: 4,387 a game over 5 games; biggest 7,2172023: 2,915 a game over 5 games; biggest 3,6482024: 2,851 a game over 5 games; biggest 4,8272025: 2,297 a game over 4 games; biggest 3,0002026: 2,810 a game over 3 games; biggest 3,15120032008201320182023

Biggest crowds on file

19,287Southern Illinois at Western Illinois2003
18,263Western Kentucky at Western Illinois2003
16,368Indiana State at Western Illinois2010
16,033Illinois State at Western Illinois2012
15,984Youngstown State at Western Illinois2004

Bars are each season’s average crowd, dots its biggest (the record in orange), the dashed rule today’s capacity. Attendance is on file for most games from 2001 on.

Weather on game day

Coldest kickoffs

Hottest kickoffs

Coldest game days before 2004

Hottest game days before 2004

Kickoffs: the NOAA report nearest kickoff from the closest weather station (NOAA NCEI Integrated Surface Database). Game days: the day’s high and snowfall at the NOAA station nearest the stadium, for Western Illinois’s home games before 2004 (NOAA GHCN-Daily, public domain).

The stadium’s history

Opened
1950
Surface over the years
Matrix Turf
Expanded
2007
Record crowd
19,850 (October 20, 1973 vs. Central Michigan)

From the stadium’s Wikipedia article, Hanson Field.

From above

50 mN ↑
The stadium’s footprint, north up: about 170 by 240 meters (560 by 790 feet), the field in green. Outline from OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Recent games here

Oct 3, 2026Western Illinois 28, Tennessee State 21
Sep 19, 2026Western Illinois 59, Morehead State 2
Sep 5, 2026Illinois State 41, Western Illinois 10
Aug 27, 2026Western Illinois 65, Northwestern (IA) 14
Nov 15, 2025Southeast Missouri State 22, Western Illinois 17
Nov 8, 2025Western Illinois 24, Lindenwood 21
Oct 18, 2025Charleston Southern 29, Western Illinois 24
Sep 27, 2025Eastern Illinois 31, Western Illinois 23
Sep 13, 2025Western Illinois 51, Valparaiso 30
Nov 23, 2024Western Illinois 45, Gardner-Webb 28
Nov 9, 2024Tennessee State 45, Western Illinois 20
Oct 19, 2024Western Illinois 37, Tennessee Tech 21