Photo by Joseph Oakes, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 3.43
Boshamer Stadium
235 Ridge Rd
Chapel Hill, NC 27599
Year Opened: 1972
Capacity: 5,000
Home Of The Tar Heels
UNC baseball has been playing at the current site of Boshamer Stadium since the late 1960s. The current stadium was renovated starting in 2007 and re-opened in 2009. The stadium now has a capacity of 4,100 and can accommodate overflow crowds of 5,000. The entire stadium has chairback seating with great sightlines of the field.
Food & Beverage 4
Boshamer Stadium has a good variety of food and drink options for fans attending UNC baseball games. These items include hot dogs, popcorn, nachos & cheese, peanuts, and candy. A couple of unique options include grilled cheeseburgers and Bojangles chicken boxes. Fountain Coke products are available as well as premium beer and domestic beer.
Boshamer has done a good job “speeding up” the concession process as many concession locations are grab-and-go, and you pay at the end after picking up your food. The fact that the stadium is cashless also speeds up the concession process. There are also “Walk Thru” beverage options on the concourse where you grab your beverage out of the refrigerator and quickly pay afterward. This includes soft drinks and alcoholic beverages.
Atmosphere 5
Boshamer Stadium is an aesthetically pleasing stadium with an all-brick exterior façade. Once inside the stadium, there is a wide concourse that runs above the seating bowl, with all of the seating below. Above the concourse is the press box and suite level. This makes the concourse a great place to stand in the shade on hot, sunny days or protected if there is a brief shower of rain. All seats are molded chairbacks and are angled toward home plate past the dugouts. There is a large scoreboard located in left field that has the line score and video replays. Overall there is not a bad seat in the house, and Boshamer Stadium is a great place to take in a baseball game.
Neighborhood 3
Boshamer Stadium is in the midst of the UNC campus near dormitories and several of the other athletic facilities including Kenan Stadium and Karen Shelton Stadium. Therefore, there are no food and lodging options within walking distance of Boshamer Stadium. If you are looking for places to eat head a couple miles to Franklin Street in downtown Chapel Hill for many options.
Fans 2
Boshamer Stadium is a beautiful baseball facility. However, unless the Tar Heels are playing local rivals NC State, ECU, or Duke, the seats remain empty for most games. Many of these other games struggle to attract crowds of 50% capacity. That’s not to say that Boshamer Stadium cannot get loud when full, just don’t expect a large crowd for most games.
Access 3
Access to Boshamer Stadium is fairly easy, but keep in mind that it is in the middle of campus so you have to navigate narrow campus roads to the stadium. For most games, parking is available for a small fee at the Ram’s Head Parking Deck, which is a five-minute walk from the stadium down Ridge Road. If that deck is full, you will be forced to the Bowles Lot near the Dean Smith Center, where parking should be plentiful, but it is a 10-15 minute walk.
Once inside the stadium, access around is easy as a large concourse is above the seating bowl. This is where the concession stands are located, as well as restrooms, and handicapped areas. If you are sitting on the third base side, the concourse does not extend above the seats. There is just a small walkway that leads from the main concourse to those seats. Therefore, the concessions and restrooms are located underneath the seating.
Return on Investment 5
UNC baseball ticket prices are on the low end for Power Five major college baseball. Single-game tickets in the main grandstand (dugout to dugout) are $10, while seating past the dugouts is only $8. This is very good for this level of baseball. The price to park is minimal or free depending on the game, and concessions are on par with many other college baseball stadiums. Therefore, UNC baseball is a very affordable sporting event for the entire family.
Extras 2
An extra point for the UNC baseball museum on the third base concourse. It is a climate-controlled room that overlooks the field that shows Tar Heel players in the MLB, and memorabilia from trips to the College World Series in Omaha.
A second extra point to the picnic tables down the first base line and the many food and drink rails located around the concourse
Final Thoughts
While UNC has made several trips to the College World Series, it is often not thought of as a blue blood in college baseball. However, it has been a consistent Top 25 team for many years. Boshamer Stadium is a beautiful, top-notch college baseball stadium. While is it not one of the larger college ballparks and is not known for its rabid crowd or fan support, it is one of the nicest college ballparks that you will visit. One will not leave disappointed in the facility with a visit to Boshamer Stadium.
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