Zachary Running Wolf and some members of the Ohlone people say the site is sacred, the resting place of villagers who once dwelt along the shores of Strawberry Creek.

“There is no specific, verified evidence of burials,” other than one cited by a consulting archaeologist, said Dan Mogulof, UC Berkeley’s executive director of public affairs.

But Richard Schwartz, a writer with several books on Berkeley history to his credit, says a look at the record raises critical questions about the university’s claim.

There is no dispute that a dozen or so burials were found at Faculty Glade, a short walk downstream from the stadium.

The evidence is less clear about the stadium area itself, but Schwartz would argue that absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.