Vaught-Hemingway Stadium

Infobox_Stadium
stadium_name = Vaught-Hemingway Stadium
nickname = "Hollingsworth Field"


location = Stadium Dr at
All-American Dr
University, MS 38677
broke_ground = 1912
opened = October 1, 1915
closed =
demolished =
owner = University of Mississippi
operator = University of Mississippi
surface = AstroPlay artificial turf
construction_cost =
architect =
former_names = Hemingway Stadium (1915-1982)
tenants = University of Mississippi Rebels (NCAA) (1915-Present)
seating_capacity = 60,850

Vaught-Hemingway Stadium at Hollingsworth Field is an outdoor football stadium located on the University of Mississippi's main campus in Oxford, Mississippi. It is primarily used for American football, and is the home field of the Ole Miss Rebels.

Built starting in 1915 as a federally-sponsored project, a series of expansions and renovations have gradually expanded the stadium and modernized its amenities, allowing the Rebels to play all of their home games on campus. Prior to the early 1990s, Ole Miss would play many of its big rivalry games, including the heated feuds with LSU, Mississippi State and University of Southern Mississippi, at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in the state capital of Jackson, located approximately 170 miles south of the Ole Miss campus. The Ole Miss-MSU game, commonly referred to as the Egg Bowl, was held in Jackson every year from 1973 through 1990 before returning to a home-and-home series.

The most recent expansion, completed in 2002, replaced the south end zone bleachers with a rounded bowl, adding luxury boxes and covered club seating in an upper deck, as well as additional general admission seating for students and season ticket holders; these renovations expanded seating capacity by nearly 10,000, giving Vaught-Hemingway a capacity equal to that of the stadium in Jackson. Long-term plans call for similar improvements to the north end zone, to complete the "bowl".

Other notable upgrades include the installation of lights in 1990, a JumboTron in 1997 and the replacement of the natural grass turf, which had become increasingly hard to maintain, with an AstroPlay artificial turf surface in 2003. Ironically, the stadium had been among the first in the nation to switch from a natural grass playing surface to artificial turf in 1970, and then one of the first of those stadiums to switch back to natural grass in 1984. For the 2008 season Vaught Hemingway Stadium will see a new Jumbotron that will currently be the largest HD screen in the SEC. It measures 84ftx48ft.

In 2004, the adjacent indoor practice facility and locker room facility was opened, including a full-size artificial turf field.

Naming History

When the stadium opened, it was named for Judge William Hemingway, a professor of law and chairman of the University's Committee on Athletics. October 12, 1982 saw the addition of legendary Ole Miss coach Johnny Vaught's name to the stadium. September 5, 1998 saw the field named for longtime supporter Dr. Jerry Hollingsworth, bringing the current official title to "Vaught-Hemingway Stadium at Hollingsworth Field".

Attendance Record

To date, the highest attendance at Vaught-Hemingway was in November 2003, when the Rebels lost by three points (by a score of 17-14) to the eventual national champion LSU Tigers. Ole Miss was playing for it's first SEC Western Division Championship but the loss caused Ole Miss to be co-champions of the SEC Western Division with LSU. The official attendance was 62,552.

References

* [http://olemisssports.collegesports.com/facilities/ole-facilities-football.html OleMissSports.com]