E.B. Cushing Stadium
E.B. Cushing Stadium
The $39.8 million, 90,500-square foot E.B. Cushing Stadium opened on Texas A&M’s west campus on April 6, 2019, giving the Aggie track and field program one of the nation’s finest collegiate facilities to call home.
Cushing Stadium has an initial seating capacity of 2,200 with ample room to expand for large meets or championships. The stadium features hospitality amenities, full broadcast capabilities and service areas, and a press box. It also has team meeting rooms, locker rooms, an athlete lounge, a training room, official’s quarters, equipment storage and a grand lobby highlighting the championship history of Aggie track and field.
Features of the track and field area of E.B. Cushing Stadium include an IAAF certified Beynon track surface with wide turns. In addition to the nine-lane oval, there is a nine-lane sprint and hurdle runway inside the oval. Field events held inside the oval include high jump, pole vault, long jump, triple jump and shot put.
"The sprint lanes in the middle of the oval enable the fans watching to see the entire race in either the 100m or 110/100m hurdles,” head coach Pat Henry said. “It will change how people usually watch those events. We will have great throwing areas for the discus, hammer and javelin in the next field over from the new complex, and they can be seen from the main stands along with seating between the new track and the warm-up track.”
The longer throwing events – discus, hammer and javelin – will utilize the Anderson Track and Field Complex that lays adjacent to the new facility and serves as a warm-up track.
"We have a full warm-up track and that changes the dynamic of everything," Henry added. "It allows people to warm-up correctly and allows for the competition to be even better. It's a wide turn on the track, one of the widest in the United States, which allows for a person running fast a little bit more transition and smoother run.”
The track surface in Cushing Stadium is by Beynon, which offers a specialized, high performance synthetic athletic surface designed for speed, competition, and daily training. The surface is resilient by formulation and the physical properties of the IAAF certified system don't change as they are exposed to the elements.
In addition to having a fast track surface, another important factor in the Beynon track surface is athlete safety in regards to improved force reduction, enhanced feel under foot, and resiliency without sacrificing performance.
Another unique feature inside the track oval is multiple runway options for the pole vault.
"We did a lot of wind studies and the direction of the wind is important for a pole vaulter," noted Henry. "So, we slanted the runways at an angle in addition to having the regular north-south runway. It will give us different opportunities to pole vault based on the wind conditions. I don't think I've ever seen cock-eye runways in a regular competition site.”
Cushing graduated from the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, now known as Texas A&M University, in 1880. He entered the school in 1877 as a member of its second class.
He worked as a civil engineer for Southern Pacific Railroad after graduation and served in the U.S. Army.
Cushing was chief engineer of construction and was active member of the American Society of Civil Engineers. He was a colonel and advising engineer in the U.S. Army and received distinguished service medals from the governments of France, Belgium and Italy.
Cushing also served as chief secretary of the Association of Ex-Cadets (now known as The Association of Former Students). He had the foresight to compile records of student enrollment from the first years of the college, setting the precedent for the Directory of Former Students.
Cushing was appointed to the Board of Directors for the school in 1912, only a year before assuming its presidency.
Later, he personally bankrolled the fledgling Texas A&M University while Chairman of the Board of Regents in 1912. His money and campaign prevented a Texas A&M consolidation with the University of Texas at Austin.
Cushing also helped establish the Alumni Bureau and the Alpha Phi Fraternity, and was elected to the Houston Committee in 1914 to represent the college before the state legislature.
He died in Houston in 1924. At the time of his death, he was a bank receiver for First National Bank in Granger, Texas.
In 1930, a library was built at Texas A&M University in memory of Cushing. This represented the first freestanding library on the Texas A&M campus. The Sterling C. Evans Library was constructed in 1968 and became the university’s primary library, but the Cushing Library remained as a repository of important university archives.
Cushing Stadium has an initial seating capacity of 2,200 with ample room to expand for large meets or championships. The stadium features hospitality amenities, full broadcast capabilities and service areas, and a press box. It also has team meeting rooms, locker rooms, an athlete lounge, a training room, official’s quarters, equipment storage and a grand lobby highlighting the championship history of Aggie track and field.
Features of the track and field area of E.B. Cushing Stadium include an IAAF certified Beynon track surface with wide turns. In addition to the nine-lane oval, there is a nine-lane sprint and hurdle runway inside the oval. Field events held inside the oval include high jump, pole vault, long jump, triple jump and shot put.
"The sprint lanes in the middle of the oval enable the fans watching to see the entire race in either the 100m or 110/100m hurdles,” head coach Pat Henry said. “It will change how people usually watch those events. We will have great throwing areas for the discus, hammer and javelin in the next field over from the new complex, and they can be seen from the main stands along with seating between the new track and the warm-up track.”
The longer throwing events – discus, hammer and javelin – will utilize the Anderson Track and Field Complex that lays adjacent to the new facility and serves as a warm-up track.
"We have a full warm-up track and that changes the dynamic of everything," Henry added. "It allows people to warm-up correctly and allows for the competition to be even better. It's a wide turn on the track, one of the widest in the United States, which allows for a person running fast a little bit more transition and smoother run.”
The track surface in Cushing Stadium is by Beynon, which offers a specialized, high performance synthetic athletic surface designed for speed, competition, and daily training. The surface is resilient by formulation and the physical properties of the IAAF certified system don't change as they are exposed to the elements.
In addition to having a fast track surface, another important factor in the Beynon track surface is athlete safety in regards to improved force reduction, enhanced feel under foot, and resiliency without sacrificing performance.
Another unique feature inside the track oval is multiple runway options for the pole vault.
"We did a lot of wind studies and the direction of the wind is important for a pole vaulter," noted Henry. "So, we slanted the runways at an angle in addition to having the regular north-south runway. It will give us different opportunities to pole vault based on the wind conditions. I don't think I've ever seen cock-eye runways in a regular competition site.”
About E.B. Cushing
Edward Benjamin Cushing was born in Houston, Texas, to E.H. and Matilda Cushing. His father was the owner of The Telegraph, a Houston newspaper.Cushing graduated from the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, now known as Texas A&M University, in 1880. He entered the school in 1877 as a member of its second class.
He worked as a civil engineer for Southern Pacific Railroad after graduation and served in the U.S. Army.
Cushing was chief engineer of construction and was active member of the American Society of Civil Engineers. He was a colonel and advising engineer in the U.S. Army and received distinguished service medals from the governments of France, Belgium and Italy.
Cushing also served as chief secretary of the Association of Ex-Cadets (now known as The Association of Former Students). He had the foresight to compile records of student enrollment from the first years of the college, setting the precedent for the Directory of Former Students.
Cushing was appointed to the Board of Directors for the school in 1912, only a year before assuming its presidency.
Later, he personally bankrolled the fledgling Texas A&M University while Chairman of the Board of Regents in 1912. His money and campaign prevented a Texas A&M consolidation with the University of Texas at Austin.
Cushing also helped establish the Alumni Bureau and the Alpha Phi Fraternity, and was elected to the Houston Committee in 1914 to represent the college before the state legislature.
He died in Houston in 1924. At the time of his death, he was a bank receiver for First National Bank in Granger, Texas.
In 1930, a library was built at Texas A&M University in memory of Cushing. This represented the first freestanding library on the Texas A&M campus. The Sterling C. Evans Library was constructed in 1968 and became the university’s primary library, but the Cushing Library remained as a repository of important university archives.
E.B. Cushing Stadium Attendance Records
| Crowd | Event | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 2,664 | Alumni Muster | April 27, 2019 |
| 2,425 | Alumni Muster | April 30, 2022 |
| 2,293 | Texas A&M Invitational (Day 2) | April 13, 2019 |
| 2,269 | The Reveille | April 6, 2019 |
| 2,051 | 44 Farms Invitational (Day 2) | April 9, 2022 |
| Stadium opened in April 2019. No home events were held in 2020. Capacity restrictions were in place for 2021 season. | ||
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