Texas A&M opened swanky ‘new’ Kyle Field on Saturday night with a thumping of Ball State in front of an SEC-high 104,213 screaming fans in College Station.

“It’s hard to make Kyle Field better, but we did the impossible,” Kevin Sumlin said after the game. “It’s a great fan experience. Being close to the field is awesome. To run out there the first time, our players were excited and I thought that energy level showed early.

“Hopefully we’re going to do our part and put a product on the field to make people want to be here.”

Fans at Tennessee’s home opener against 19th-ranked Oklahoma set a crowd volume record. At one point in the first half (unclear when), the noise hit 114 decibels, the loudest noise ever recorded in checkered Neyland Stadium’s 94-year history.

By comparison, the loudness of a jet engine at 100 feet can is estimated at 140 decibels. The hype level was moot after the Sooners turned back a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter to win in overtime.

Week 2’s average of 72,877 fans per SEC game eclipsed opening weekend’s 63,213 average thanks to the announced sellouts of 100,000-plus attending games in Knoxville and College Station. Another 98,568 watched Alabama’s 37-10 win over Middle Tennessee in Tuscaloosa.

The average would’ve been higher if not for Mizzou’s rare road game at Arkansas State. The Red Wolves’ Centennial Bank Stadium in Jonesboro, Arkansas, seats just under 31,000 and wasn’t filled to capacity for the Tigers.

Here are the attendance figures from all 11 SEC Week 2 contests:

Attendance Game Date Venue
104,213 Ball State at Texas A&M Sept. 12 Kyle Field
102,455 Oklahoma at Tennessee Sept. 12 Neyland Stadium
98,568 Middle Tennessee at Alabama Sept. 12 Bryant-Denny Stadium
88,034 East Carolina at Florida Sept. 12 Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
87,451 Jacksonville St. at Auburn Sept. 12 Jordan-Hare Stadium
82,178 Kentucky at South Carolina Sept. 12 Williams-Brice Stadium
62,531 LSU at Mississippi State Sept. 12 Davis Wade Stadium
60,302 Fresno state at Ole Miss Sept. 12 Vaught-Hemingway Stadium
49,591 Toledo vs. Arkansas Sept. 12 War Memorial Stadium
37,185 Georgia at Vanderbilt Sept. 12 Vanderbilt Stadium
29,143 Mizzou at Arkansas State Sept. 12 Centennial Bank Stadium