Orchard Park, N.Y. (WBEN/WGR Sports Radio 550) - As the new Highmark Stadium along Abbott Road in Orchard Park gets set to host its first football-related event this Saturday with the annual "Return of the Blue and Red" scrimmage, the old stadium just across the street is now nothing but a pile of concrete and steel rubble.
Just in the last couple of weeks, demolition crews at the stadium have completely brought down both the North and South wing of the facility, leaving in its wake open air and blue skies that haven't been seen at the site in more than 50 years.
For a number of Bills fans, seeing the old stadium site as it is now leaves a bittersweet feeling in their mouths.
"I'm old enough to have gone from the 'Rockpile' to this one, so it is kind of sad, but the new one looks really, really good," said Paul from Orchard Park.
"A lot of memories. I'm 72-years-old now, and when I walked into this stadium, I was 19. It's been a while. Very depressing," added Chuck from Cheektowaga.
For David, who's back home visiting from the Seattle area, while he feels sad seeing the old stadium go, he can't help but be amazed at the new football "cathedral" that's up across the street.
"This is the first time I laid eyes on it is today. Other than that, I've been out in the Seattle area, and I've been able to watch it through the internet and see how the progress is going. But when you hear firsthand, it's an eye-opener. It really is," David shared with WBEN.
"Just seeing something that I grew up going to and stuff like that, seeing on TV, just seeing it down to rubble now and then looking across the street to basically a coliseum, it's nuts. So it's pretty cool," echoed Connor from Orchard Park. "I'm excited for it. It'll be awesome to see when the day comes, and looking forward to it."
For some fans, seeing the stadium come down as fast as it has is a bit surprising.
"I was under the impression it wasn't going to be done until spring of 2027. It's really kind of surprising to see how close the new one is here while standing in a parking lot," Chuck said with WBEN.
"I live right down the street, so just coming here today to the Bills Store, I didn't realize that it was already down to all this. It's nuts. Absolutely crazy," Connor added.
As for David, he's not at all surprised with how professionals taking down the stadium are making such quick time.
"They've got their standards set by the EPA and all the environmental issues, and they've been working, going 24/7 it seems like. They've been doing a banner job. So it won't be long it'll be gone, and what they've got in store to replace it, I have no idea. But they'll figure something out with it," he said.
Demolition of the stadium officially commenced in early May, and was set to be completed in March of 2027.
And like many Bills fans, seeing the old stadium come down brings back a flood of memories.
"I remember 80,000 people - not 75,000, not 73,000, and certainly not 62,000," Paul said with WBEN. "And I remember the Bills of the '80s and the Bills of the '90s, my Season Tickets were Joe Ferguson, Jerry Butler - that era when Ralph [Wilson] was not so out giving with his money and stuff like that. But it's always been great. Buffalo's a pretty unique town for their sports enthusiasm, if you will."
"I was here for everything since Day 1 - the Comeback Game, the first Super Bowl, the tearing down the goalposts, the Miami game. It's been a lot of memories," Chuck added.
But with knowing what's in store for the new stadium with weeks until the kick off for the NFL season, fans are hoping to make plenty of new memories at the state-of-the-art facility across the street.
"My wife and I, we're going to be going to the Thanksgiving game against the Chiefs, so super excited about that. Get in there and see it in person," Connor said. But just seeing aerial shots and everything, seeing the field, I'm excited. Just the size of it compared to the old one here, it's awesome."
"I will be there Saturday, and we'll see. We're in Section 113, the Bills side, Row 30. I can't wait to get in there and check it out," Chuck said.
