UW will use Qwest Field while stadium renovated
Apple Cup 2011 will also relocate
The University of Washington announced Thursday what had long been anticipated – that it will play the 2012 football season at Qwest Field while Husky Stadium is renovated.
But the Huskies added a twist, announcing they will also play the 2011 Apple Cup at Qwest in an effort to get an early start on construction.
The 2011 Apple Cup is set for Nov. 19. The last UW home game before that is Oct. 29 against Oregon, so moving the Apple Cup allows for a three-week jump on the renovation.
Washington athletic director Scott Woodward said the move of the Apple Cup will save the school roughly $3 million in labor and other costs.
“That’s serious money and it does really help on our time line,” he said.
Washington officials said playing Oregon was a fitting way to send out the old Husky Stadium, the foundation of which has existed since 1920.
The move has nothing to do with negotiations between Washington and WSU a few years ago to move the Apple Cup to Qwest Field on a yearly basis.
“This is all about getting out early and saving money and beginning construction early,” Woodward said.
The game will be a UW home game and WSU will get only the same percentage of tickets it would normally be allotted for an Apple Cup at Husky Stadium (with the number of total tickets available to the public expected to be roughly 65,000).