April 10, 2010
UFCU Disch-Falk Field (Capacity: 6,649)
Austin, TX
Texas Longhorns vs Kansas Jayhawks
Final Score: 3 – 1
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While in Texas Hill Country for a friend’s wedding at Lake Travis, we took in the sights and sounds of Austin, the fun capital of Texas. Also known as “The Live Music Capitol of the World”, the city is the 4th largest in the state and is in one of the fastest growing regions of the country. Austin is indeed “weird”, but also beautiful as it lies in the center of the Lone Star State, along the Colorado River. The University of Texas is in the urban core and with over 50,000 students, it is the fifth largest university in the United States. The Longhorns have one of the most successful athletic programs in the country and on this visit, we took in a baseball game. That sport is no different in terms of prosperity as UT holds many team records. The Horns have won six national championships, with their last one coming in 2005. UFCU Disch-Falk Field is home and the ballpark was built in 1975. A masterful renovation from 2006-2008, remade the stadium into a much better and different facility. This was my first college baseball game and I started right at the top of the list in terms of history, fans, passion and the ballpark.
Prestige Ranking: 4 out of 5
Location
The stadium’s location is on the east side of I-35 and the Interstate acts to seclude this section of campus from the rest of UT and downtown. Most of the great places to see are only a mile or two away, so it is worth making a quick drive to visit the state capitol building, Texas’ campus and the many awesome bars and restaurants that Austin offers. Downtown is vibrant and also make sure to see the millions of bats that fly out from the Congress Street Bridge at dusk. For an overview of the city, take a look from Mount Bonnell. There is an attraction within walking distance from the ballpark as the LBJ Presidential Library and Museum was quite good and on this trip, it worked out as we went there and then walked to the ballgame right after the visit.
Location Ranking: 7.5 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Since it’s anomalous to find someone who does the museum (parks there) and heads to the baseball game, let’s break down how a normal arrival goes….The stadium is pretty easy to get to off of Exit 235B from I-35. The issue then becomes parking as most of the lots nearby are reserved for donors and it is a bit confusing to decipher which is which. The rest of the common folk had to park in lots that were a healthy distance from the stadium. It wasn’t hard to find these lots, just wasn’t all that clear going in.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 6 out of 8
Exterior
Exterior walls follow the adjacent streets, while in front of home plate, there are some jagged edges joined with flat panels which make for the front of the building. It is a pretty good look with “UFCU Disch-Falk Field” spelled out at the top and a large picture mural of the team over the box office. Unfortunately, they put some trees right in front of the entrance, so you can’t clearly see the design on your approach in. There is an odd layering of pieces (likely because of the renovation) as some of it is a light brick while the new top level is silver colored glass and steel. There’s even a third unique layer on the sides as the brick merges into concrete (most noticeable on the First Base side).
Exterior Ranking: 6.5 out of 10
Concourse
A covered concourse extends behind the main seating bowl and it is quite spacious with plenty of room to maneuver. Sporadic picnic tables exist in the space, but it’s not the most pleasant of sights as you have no view of the field while looking at a bunch of steel beams. A small team store was located right behind home plate. Beyond the seating bowl, the concourse opens up to a walkway that features several food stands.
Concourse Ranking: 3 out of 5
Food
The most variety came from those trucks and tents down the third base line. The options were decent as you could find some barbeque and even a catfish sandwich. Inside the main concourse, more standard ballpark fare was offered. Being a college facility, there was no beer sold.
Food Ranking: 5.5 out of 8
Interior
Inside, the seating bowl wraps from first to third base and features a walkway splitting the seating with more of the seats in the upper section. A good portion of the bowl is covered by a large roof, which is nice when that Texas sun starts to heat things up late in the season. The grandstand features a tall section of seating and one that offers very good sightlines to the field. Luxury suites and the press box make up the top of the main seating bowl. Additional sections of seats can be found near field level beyond the main area and there is also a large grassy area in the corner. The outfield view is not spectacular with I-35 in left, a parking lot in center and the softball field in right (which did have a good exterior design). Seats at Disch-Falk are colored green and the Longhorn logo is scattered around, including a large one on the field in short center. Flying high in the outfield is the U.S. and Texas state flag. The Disch may not be fancy, but it’s a design I prefer with good sightlines all around.
Interior Ranking: 10 out of 14
Scoreboard
The scoreboard in left does not have a special design as it comes with the standard box score and a (small) video screen complete with replays. Advertisements make up the sides, but the top has the ballpark name, Longhorn logo and the six Championships displayed.
Scoreboard Ranking: 2.5 out of 4
Displays
Walking around the outside of the stadium, UT rightly hangs side banners denoting each National Championship that the school has won. Texas also makes their championships visible at the top of the scoreboard inside the park. Individual honors could be found a bit hidden in the back of the seating bowl. Six Texas players are honored with a simple name, number and year played (Roger Clemens’ #21 was one of them). Combined with the number of Longhorn logos around, the displays are good, but I felt a little more could have been done, especially along the concourse.
Displays Ranking: 3 out of 6
Cost
The price of going to a Longhorns baseball game is comparable to the minor leagues, but on the higher end. Tickets were $12, with the grassy areas being $7. Parking was $5, a bit steep, while the food was in the higher price range as well. The kicker was the $1 for a scorecard and $6 for a program, which was essentially their yearbook.
Cost Ranking: 6 out of 8
Fan Support
Very few schools can pack them in for a baseball game like Texas can and that was no different for this Sunday Afternoon contest. Handfuls of empty seats were the only blemish as the ballpark was 80-90% full. The team so far this season is 4th nationally in attendance and during the last few years, they have been Top 5 with similar averages. Most of the fans were older and you had to strain to find someone who looked like a current student.
Fan Support Ranking: 7 out of 8
Atmosphere
The atmosphere and passion here was fantastic and despite this being my first college baseball game with no other experiences to compare, I’m pretty sure it is one of the better atmosphere’s out there at this level. Most of the fans were all decked out in burnt orange and made a good deal of noise after solid plays. They wildly applauded (and some stood) for double plays, good fielding and it became downright loud after the Horns took the lead on a home run. Before and after the game, fans stand up for the fight song while they hold their fingers high displaying the “Hook ’em Horns”. Following the fight song is “The Eyes of Texas”.
Atmosphere Ranking: 12 out of 14
Other Stuff
I found the knothole stuff outside the ballpark pretty cool, as there were several fans that set up lawnchairs behind the chain-link fence in the left corner and they would sit and watch the game for free. Meanwhile, in right field is a tradition in the ballpark. A couple of old buses are parked there for each home game as fans stand on platforms tailgating, watching and cheering on the Horns. They have been around for many years and the loyal fans make for a unique college baseball tradition…..Last year (2009), Texas played Boston College and Disch-Falk Field was witness to the longest game in college baseball history. After 25 innings and 7 hours, the Longhorns won 3-2 at 2:05 AM. The game was an NCAA Regional…..The ballpark was named after two former coaches, while the UFCU part comes in from a recent credit union sponsorship.
Game
The game was quick as it zipped by in 2 hours and 19 minutes, It was all about defense as the Longhorns had some great fielding and turned three double plays. Cole Green pitched beautifully only giving up 1 run and 4 hits as he improved to 7-0 on the season. Texas came back from a 1-0 deficit with a sac fly run in the 5th and then a solo homer by Tant Shepard in the 6th. Chance Ruffin closed out the Jayhawks.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
