Vaught-Hemingway Stadium Expansion Announced
University, Miss. (TLV) – The Rebels are moving Forward Together. But never forgetting No. 38. A new stadium expansion will officially allow for 64,038.
After a nine-win regular season that saw Ole Miss defeat No. 1 Alabama and No. 4 Mississippi State, Athletics Director Ross Bjork went on the offensive.
Artist’s rendering of the expected Vaught-Hemingway expansion
Just days after a 31–17 Egg Bowl victory, Ole Miss announced a contract extension and raise that will keep Hugh Freeze and his staff in Oxford for the next four years. Freeze’s salary was increased from $3 million to $4.3 million per year.
Just two weeks removed from that announcement, Bjork unveiled plans for a new north end zone that will bowl-in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium and increase capacity to over 64,000. Construction on the north end zone is scheduled to begin in December of 2015 and be ready for the start of the 2016 season.
Plans call for a new video board that stretches an astonishing 104 feet wide and stands 94 feet tall. For reference, the Aggies of Texas A&M currently house the largest video board in college football. It takes up a total of 7,661 square feet. The Rebels board will engulf 9,776 square feet, roughly 25 percent larger.
Bjork said that two 30 x 50 foot video boards will be placed in the south end zone project, which includes 770 club level seats and 30 luxury suites to be ready for the beginning of the 2015 season.
At the conclusion of the project, Vaught-Hemingway will be the largest stadium in Mississippi. The student section will move into the new north end zone in 2016, increasing its capacity to 10,000. 
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This article was originally printed in The Local Voice #219 (published December 18, 2014).
To download a PDF of this issue, click here.
About the Author
Carver Rayburn Carver Rayburn was born and raised an Ole Miss Rebel in Oxford, Mississippi. He has worked for many newspapers and magazines in both editorial and advertising, including OffBeat Magazine, The Hattiesburg American, The Meridian Star, The Neshoba Democrat, The Madison County Journal, The Clarke County Tribune, The New Albany Gazette, Southeastern Football Saturdays, and Rebel Yell. He currently lives in New Orleans and has a four-year-old son, Hart. You can contact Carver at carverrayburn@hotmail.com.
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