Thanks to a multi-year gift from the Knowlton Foundation, the facility that serves as the home of Augustana's football and track & field programs is now known as the Austin E. Knowlton Outdoor Athletic Complex.
Opened in fall 2013, the Knowlton Complex includes Charles D. Lindberg Stadium, the Ken Anderson Academic All-America Club, the Players' Plaza, and the Viking Patio and Overlook. Ericson Field's playing surface was replaced in the summer of 2026, and the Paul V. Olsen Track was installed in 2019.
The Austin E. Knowlton Outdoor Athletic Complex is named in honor of the late Ohio businessman and philanthropist Austin E. Knowlton, founder of the Knowlton Foundation, which he funded throughout his lifetime and through a provision in his will.
This is not the first time Augustana has benefited from Mr. Knowlton's generosity. Previous gifts included his Ohio and Colorado homes, which were sold to establish the Austin E. Knowlton Memorial Scholarship and the Austin E. Knowlton Honors Program in 2004. Those earlier gifts came directly from Mr. Knowlton, while this gift was made through the Knowlton Foundation.
Charles D. Lindberg Stadium
The centerpiece of the Knowlton Complex, Lindberg Stadium is located on the north side of the facility. Its three-story grandstand features team facilities on the ground level, including a spacious locker room with 133 lockers, training and taping areas, and team meeting rooms.
The stadium seats 1,800 spectators, with chair-back seating along the 50-yard line and a designated student section. The second level overlooks the football field and houses football coaching offices, a conference room, and display and reception areas. The third level includes the Dave Wrath Press Box along with entertainment and recruiting suites. More photos of the facility can be found HERE.Â
Ken Anderson Academic All-America Club
A distinctive feature of the Knowlton Complex, the Anderson Academic All-America Club provides an indoor gathering space with televisions, innovative concessions, room to socialize during Viking contests, and picture-window views of the game-day action. The club showcases Viking football memorabilia and a display honoring Academic All-Americans. It is also available year-round for social events and meetings of up to 80 people.
Players' Plaza
Players' Plaza serves as the main entrance to the Knowlton Complex and provides a gathering place for fans before and after games. Located at the northwest corner of the complex, adjacent to the Carver Center, it also connects to the parking lot used for football season tailgating.
Ericson Field
Located in the far northeast corner of the Augustana College campus, Ericson Field is home to Viking football and track & field. The field is named in honor of Senator Charles J.A. Ericson, who died in Boone, Iowa, in 1910.
Born in the Province of Calmer, Sweden, Charles Ericson immigrated to America and settled in Moline at age 12. Although he attended school in Moline, he hunted and fished on the land where the stadium that bears his name now stands. At 19, he moved to Mineral Ridge, Iowa, where he opened a general store and later helped organize the First National Bank of Boone in 1872.
Ericson entered politics and was elected to the Iowa State Senate in 1895. Upon his death in 1910, he left Augustana College 260 acres of Iowa farmland rich in coal, along with $13,000 to help purchase land for an athletic field.
His gift came with three conditions: Augustana would raise the remaining $13,000 needed to purchase the $26,000 property; the land at Fifth Avenue and 38th Street—where he had played as a boy—would be purchased; and the facility would be named Ericson Athletic Field.
A new synthetic turf surface and lights were installed in the summer of 2002. The field was resurfaced twice, first in 2012 and again in 2026.
Viking Patio and Overlook
The Viking Patio and Overlook offers fans another gathering space from the northwest corner of the field, situated between the Anderson Club and Lindberg Stadium. The area includes a concession stand and provides outstanding views of both the game and Augustana's landmark building, Old Main.
The original facility on the south side of the Knowlton Complex was built in 1936, expanded in 1962, and now serves as the visitors' section.
Paul V. Olsen Track
Augustana's nine-lane track was completely resurfaced in 2019, along with the pole vault, long jump, triple jump, and javelin runways. The full-pour polyurethane Tartan surface is composed of 14 percent rubber and 86 percent polyurethane—the same track system used at the U.S. Olympic Training site in San Diego.
