Arkansas Football: Garth Brooks breaks attendance record at Razorback Stadium

Country music superstar Garth Brooks took over Razorback Stadium on April 23 and put on a record-breaking performance right atop the Arkansas football field.

Brooks’ concert stop in Fayetteville was the first time he performed anywhere in Arkansas since 2014, which made for a very in-demand concert ticket.

With Fayetteville nestled in Northwest Arkansas, it’s reasonably close enough to Oklahoma, Missouri, and Kansas that the superstar solo artist was able to draw from fans across a spectrum of states.

The country music fans came out in droves, including a few famous ones. Country music personality, host, and performer Bobby Bones took the stage at the concert to warm the crowd up. He was later joined on stage by Arkansas Basketball Coach Eric Musselman, who presented the Hot Springs, Ark. native with his own custom Razorback jersey on stage.

Garth Brooks breaks longtime Arkansas Football attendance record

According to the Southwest Times Record, the concert attendance topped more than 80,000 at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium.

That shatters the previous record of 76,808, which was set back in September of 2010 when Arkansas hosted Alabama for a SEC football game, according to the Arkansas Football team.

Concerts have historically not been allowed on the Arkansas football field because the staging, equipment, and fans destroy the grass, leaving the football team with a poor playing surface or no surface at all.

Fortunately, the higher-ups inside the Arkansas Athletic Department already had plans in place to replace the grass this summer. 

The Razorbacks are having grass from Memphis shipped over to be installed in June, according to Whole Hog Sports.

Arkansas Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek called the process “really simple” and the field should be in pristine condition by the time the first Arkansas football game of the 2022 season kicks off in September.