Michigan Stadium: The Big House

College football boasts more than a few huge stadiums.

But there is only one known as "The Big House."

For a century, Michigan Stadium has been home to the enormously successful Michigan Wolverines. In that time, the stadium has become one of the most famous venues in American sport -- a place where Heisman Trophy winners have starred, great football drama has unfolded, and Michigan has almost always seemed to win.

The Big House is currently the second-largest stadium in college football, and will reclaim its long-held title as the largest as soon as a current renovation project is completed in 2010.

Michigan Stadium's capacity has fluctuated over the years and currently stands, officially, at 106,201. That makes the stadium, located at the intersection of Main Street and Stadium Boulevard in Ann Arbor, the second-largest in college football, behind only Penn State's Beaver Stadium, which holds 107,282.

The listed capacity, of course, doesn't seem to matter much when it comes to actual attendance: Michigan Stadium has hosted several crowds in excess of 110,000, including a record-setting audience of 112,118 for a 2003 showdown with Ohio State.

It's fitting that the man most responsible responsible for building Michigan football is also responsible for building Michigan Stadium.

Fielding Yost, the groundbreaking coach who made Michigan a college football powerhouse, began pushing for a new stadium for his increasingly popular program in the 1920s. But it wasn't until 1926 that Michigan officials finally green-lighted Yost's stadium, which he hoped would seat up to 150,000.

School officials couldn't be sold on something quite that big, so Yost settled for a facility that would seat 72,000, with the potential to be expanded to 100,000.

The bowl-styled stadium, fashioned after Yale's historic Yale Bowl and sunken deep into swampy Ann Arbor soil, was completed in just over a year for a cost of $950,000.

On Oct. 1, 1927, a crowd of 84,401 (about 12,000 of which were sitting in temporary seating) saw Michigan beat Ohio Wesleyan 33-0 in the first game ever played at their new home. A few weeks later, on the stadium's official dedication day, Michigan scored a 19-0 win over -- who else? -- Ohio State.

Michigan recently launched a massive $226 million renovation of the stadium, with the goal of improving the game-day experience while preserving its historic feel.

Planned improvements include wider seats, better access for the disabled, expanded restrooms and concession areas, a new press box and, of course, 49 luxury suites and nearly 2,000 club seats for especially wealthy Wolverine fans.

The project will also increase the stadium's capacity to more than 108,000 and make it, once more, the nation's largest.