Booming business

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(Image: Ohio Field, 1915) Following Ohio State’s back-to-back Western Conference (eventually the Big Ten) titles in 1916 and 1917, the necessity of constructing a large stadium became apparent. When Ohio State and Illinois met for the Western Conference championship in 1919, 20,000 people watched the game in the bleachers or along Ohio Field’s perimeter; an estimated 40,000 people stood farther out. Spectators broke down the field’s fence and sat on the turf; nearby homeowners put up bleachers on their roofs and charged admission