For those of you who lived in the stadium dorms back in the day...

Thanks for sharing. I guess I'll have to wait to read. I won't be giving the SADVOCATE one red nickel

They trying to make me pay a dollar B.

I wish I could read the article but only got past the first couple of lines.

I lived in the stadium 3rd level, pretty close to where the elevator to the press box is located now - closest to the North end. Three people to a room, one double deck bed and one single bed - more like a cot. Small desks in the room - and I forget what accommodations for personal storage there was. I didn't have much so it was adequate - didn't expect more.

One community bathroom per floor between the stairways. Showers accommodate maybe half dozen people at a time. No individual privacy. One water fountain, and one coin operated telephone per section.

The phone was always busy - never even thought of trying to make a call. But I do remember once getting back to the dorm one weekend after I hitch-hiked back from Leesville. When I entered the hallway, the phone was vacant - HOORAH - thought I'd call my brother who lived in BR. Picked up the phone to dial his number and no dial tone. Puzzled I just held it for a moment and then heard someone say - 'hello?' ==== It was my BROTHER calling ME and I had picked it up before the first ring. That was the ONLY time I ever had a conversation on that phone.

Campus was pretty vacant on weekends without games, so most times I hitch-hiked home. But one time in November, it was bitter cold, and my roommate and I were alone in the room with nothing to do - so we decided to do a prank. Gathered up some newspapers, and soaked them in the water fountain to form a big ball. Opened the window and waited for a target to pass underneath. Finally a group of about 6 guys came walking under us. Tossed out the soggy paper and made a direct hit in the middle of the group.

I swear we had happened to attack a Seal Team Six unit - they immediately located us - (open window was dead giveaway) and broke into two squads headed for the two access stairways to our section. We ran out of the room toward the closed exit but heard them on our landing before we had a chance to escape. Out of desperation, I reached out and grabbed the door knob of the closest door and it OPENED - we went inside and closed/locked the door, and remained quiet.

They went up and down the hall, pounding on every door and talking about us in a most unfriendly manner. We stayed in that room for well over an hour after we heard them leave. Worst example of a "practical joke" I ever engaged in. Never again.

We had a 3rd roommate from New Orleans. Hardly ever saw him. He came in well after midnight, if at all, and never was awake when we left for class. Of course we took the two lower bunks so he had the upper. We short sheeted his bed a couple of times and he made no remark about it. We removed half the springs that held the bed to the side bars. The next morning his arse hanging down halfway to my roommate's bed. Only a few times had any conversation with him - all he talked about was getting drunk. He was not back the next semester.

Spent two semesters in the stadium, Fall 56 - Spring 57. Married that summer and lived off campus thereafter, ending up in the brand new original married students apartments just off Nicholson. Couple of the football team were married and lived just above us in the 59/60 semesters - one was Warren Rabb.

Good times - would not want to change any of it. Except I wish we hadn't done the wet paper prank.

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Spent two semesters in the stadium, Fall 56 - Spring 57.

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Legit cool story bro.

RIGHT when we moved in (fall semester 1984) they added stall doors to the showers and toilets in the hall baths, which before then were military-style just up against the wall. The next year I Iived in Pentagon, and each floor (4 rooms per floor) shared a bath. The one shower had a curtain, but the two toilets were out in the open with no privacy. We'd walk over to the library or a nearby classroom building when we had to take a dump.

From what I was told, early summer of 1983 before LSU hosted the national Special Olympics, they added ceiling fans to all the un-air-conditioned dorms on campus. Those plus a couple of box fans on the windowsills did help a lot with the heat, both in Pentagon and N. Stadium.

It's funny when you think about it-- north, east and west stadium dorms had NO ductwork, no HVAC. Outside windows on the dorm room side and inside windows under the concourse on the hall side. Heating was from the old radiator system.

The closets for storage were wooden add-ins along half of a wall, and did not go all the way to the ceilings, so you could stick/store stuff up above (same thing in Pentagon). The other half of the long wall was a long desk for two students and bookshelves above.

Funny hearing about the hall pay phone. Obviously well before I was there, they added phone lines with jacks for each dorm room.

The second semester we were there they got cable. I don't remember them wiring it, they must have done that before the school year and only got the system up and running for spring semester, 1985.

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they added ceiling fans to all the un-air-conditioned dorms on campus.

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I thought they added window AC's but perhaps I am remembering wrong.

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ChineseBandit58

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Great stories!

And Got damn. You are 88 years old and still posting on TD?

I lived in North Stadium in the early 1960's. Quite an experience compared to the dorms of today! I guess primitive is the word, but was a happy place. Played a lot of bouree' card games there! No tv, no AC, steam heat from radiators, community bathrooms... could sneak through the fencing to get into the stadium, but our ID's got us into all games... got non-student friends into games that way! What a place! Some great memories that last forever!

I also lived on the 5th floor of West Stadium my freshman year, a few years before you. I spent as little time as possible there because there was no A/C and you had to leave the windows open to get any kind of air circulating. Naturally, this let in a multitude of bugs. I vividly remember showering in that nasty communal shower with a thousand bugs swarming around me. Freshmen were required to live on campus or at home back then. Next year, I was out of there as fast as I could go.

While living there, I worked at the McDonald's on State Street, which was also quite an experience, especially on game days. Talk about not having time to breathe. It was a madhouse most of the time. One night after work, some friends and I got into some vodka. I'm still amazed I made it up the five flights to my room because I was pretty wasted.

The only good thing about living in the stadium was you didn't have to go far to get to the gate into the games. Students got in on their IDs back then--no lottery needed. It was part of your $160 per semester fee. I would imagine it's a bit pricier nowadays.

I lived on the 2nd floor of West Stadium, across the road from Hatcher and the two girl's dorms, in '85.

I had a single room with no air conditioning, but my outside wall was windows and I had a couple of box fans for the really hot days. The bathroom was in the middle of the long hall of rooms, toilets had new normal walls, but the showers were still open military style.

It was extremely chill, the guys were mostly friends and everyone minded their own business. I don't remember ever seeing the RA. (I became an RA in Hatcher the next year).

there were some great stories involving parties and girlfriends, but like I said everyone was very chill.

One of the interesting things was looking out our windows watching the black fraternities doing their "step" practice with their cains.

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I thought they added window AC's but perhaps I am remembering wrong.

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They did add window unit A/Cs to Pentagon, but that was a bit later, after I had graduated. I think they were there when my sister lived in Pentagon in the early 1990s...