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Case Western Reserve University's DiSanto Field stands in for the University of Wisconsin's Camp Randall in "Draft Day."

(Dale Robinette, Courtesy of Summit Entertainment)

CLEVELAND, Ohio – When "Draft Day" opens Friday, all eyes will be on stars Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, Frank Langella and Denis Leary. But there's a local star who has a cameo in the film: Case Western Reserve University's DiSanto Field.

Costner plays Sonny Weaver, the Cleveland Browns' general manager who faces cataclysmic decisions as the NFL draft nears. At one point he calls the Wisconsin Badgers football coach, portrayed by the versatile Sam Elliott, to check on a player. The stadium shown is supposed to be Camp Randall, the Badgers' home field.

Having one site stand in for another – akin to a stuntman filling in for the star – is common in Hollywood, of course. In this case, the two stadiums could not be more different.

The nation's fourth oldest stadium, Camp Randall was built in 1917 and seats more than 80,000. On a home Saturday in Madison, Bucky Badger prowls the sidelines as a sea of red and white fills the stands. Those fans make up one of college football's storied traditions, a "fifth quarter" of traditional sing-alongs in the Big Ten stadium.

Case Western's DiSanto Field has a bit more of a modest history. Opened in 2005, it holds 2,400 students. Designed with dorms within very close proximity to the stands, it is an integral part of the campus for the school, which competes in Division III and does not give football scholarships.

One common denominator: Surfaces of both fields are FieldTurf.

A representative for the university says the actors portraying Wisconsin players last June were not Case Western football players, and filming took about half a day. The scene in the movie is a brief one but involved dozens of people. Filming at Case "involved a crew of 130, plus 30 to 40 extras," the university says.

Folks at the Big Ten school don't seem bothered by Camp Randall's portrayal by the smaller school in Cleveland.

"It's great that our school is portrayed in the movie," said Justin Doherty, associate athletic director for external relations at the University of Wisconsin. "I know it's a movie and it's fiction, so when you're making a movie you have a license to be creative in the way you see fit."

There is one factual connection between the schools' football teams. Joe Fogg, who coached Case Western from 1907-10, played for Wisconsin. He also played for the Akron East Ends of the Ohio League, a precursor to the National Football League, and later became an attorney in Cleveland.