Ole Miss is expected to continue to rise in national recognition in 2016. That means more eyes around the country, but also more eyes inside Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
When the season begins, the Rebels will be in a new-look, bowled-in Vaught, a project announced in late 2014.
“It’s going to take a good atmosphere and make it better. I think all the stuff they’re doing in the stadium was needed, but on top of that, it’s going to be welcomed to the point of gaining additional fans and keeping them interested throughout the game,” Oxford Citizen sports editor John Davis said.
“The success of the team will be the big sticking point, but when people get there, they’ll really appreciate all the new stuff.”
The south end zone had already added 30 suites and 770 club seats. The student section that was in the South endzone will move to the newly-bowled north endzone and will add nearly 2,000 spots.
No matter where they sit, the views will increase. The project will add a 104 x 94 feet screen in the north endzone and a pair of 30 x 50 screens in the south.
Through the Forward Together Campaign, The Vaught will become the state’s largest stadium, overtaking Mississippi State’s Davis Wade Stadium with a capacity of 64,038.
Davis believes that is more a topic among Mississippi State fans than Ole Miss fans.
“I think when you’re Ole Miss, you don’t really worry as much about State as State worries about Ole Miss,” Davis said. “But I do think you can use it on the recruiting trail. The fans may say something, but I think at the end of the day they’re more worried about wins and losses, whereas I think State worries about every single thing that you can worry about.”
Ole Miss’ 2016 recruiting class ranked sixth nationally, third in the ever-competitive SEC.
The work began right after the Egg Bowl, Ole Miss’ second straight win in the heated rivalry with the Bulldogs, with Mississippi’s prep championship crowds getting the first look at a torn down north endzone.
“This has been something that has been more of a need than just a want or desire,” he said.
