Opening of Stanford Stadium delayed

For those who circled Sept. 9 on their calendars for the 2006 Stanford football home opener with San Jose State — erase that and circle Sept. 16 instead.

The grand opening of the new Stanford Stadium is scheduled for Sept. 16, 2006 when the Cardinal hosts Navy. Stanford originally had its Sept. 9 game scheduled to unveil its new stadium.

“The ongoing construction of the Stadium has continued at a rapid pace and we’re extremely pleased with the progress,” Stanford acting Athletic Director Bill Walsh said. “It’s projected to be done on time. But, in moving the San Jose State game to Spartan Stadium, we feel it gives us that extra week to assure ourselves that the stadium will be 100 percent ready.

“Also, Stanford and San Jose State have a long tradition of playing football against one another and it’s appropriate to have a game at Spartan Stadium on occasion,” he said.

Stanford will open the 2006 season with a road game at Oregon in a key Pacific-10 Conference matchup on Sept. 2. Following the SJS game on Sept. 9, the Cardinals will host the Grand Opening of Stanford Stadium.

Construction of the new stadium began last Nov. 26, and crews are working 16-hour days. The Grand Opening date is still tentative, subject to construction schedules throughout the next six months. But Stanford officials say the $90 million project will provide Stanford and its fans with one of the premier college football facilities in the nation.

The remaining home games include Washington State on Sept. 23, Arizona on Oct. 14 in the Homecoming Game, national powerhouse USC on Nov. 4 and Pac-10 rival Oregon State on Nov. 18. The 109th Big Game vs. California will be played on Dec. 2 in Berkeley.