New temporary Northwestern Wildcats' stadium named Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin stadium

EVANSTON, Ill. (WLS) -- The temporary home for the Northwestern University Wildcats has officially been named Northwestern Medicine Field.

The team held their first practice at the lakefront stadium, where they will play for the next couple of years while the new Ryan Field is built.

With the new season home opener three weeks away construction crews are making sure the stadium will be ready.

The facility has come a long way in the few short months since it was announced the team would need a temporary place to play games while Ryan Field is being rebuilt.

"It's just great to be out here. This is our stadium. This is our home that we're going to be playing in, so it's great to get out here, get a feel for things," said wide receiver AJ Henning. "We've been cooped up in camp so far, so it's great to get out here today."

The stadium's official name is Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium. At 15,000 seats, it's a smaller footprint than Ryan Field, which will have a capacity of 35-thousand seats, but players say it still feels special.

"You can see Lake Michigan right here. What other stadium has that? It's kind of close knit, but it still has a lot of seats, so it feels like a college stadium," said running back Cam Porter.

Football coach David Braun pushed for keeping a stadium on campus rather than using an off-site facility, although two of the season's seven home games will take place at Wrigley Field.

"I think it's a mix of big 10 football, Friday night lights, a little bit of high school feel to it," Braun said.

Deputy Director of Athletics Jesse Marks said the stadium is on pace to open in 19 days and will features suites, a beer garden and a section for tailgating.

Marks said 90% of the season ticket base has been sold.

"We held back single game seats so the university community, Evanston community, Northshore community and Chicagoland has access to single game seats," he said.

In the meantime, while Ryan Field is under construction. the team overseeing the project is exploring partnerships with local car washes to provide vouchers to neighbors who live in close proximity to the site and are experiencing a lot of dust in their neighborhoods.