{"id":131891,"date":"2023-09-01T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-01T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/?p=131891"},"modified":"2023-08-31T18:44:47","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T23:44:47","slug":"ole-miss-band-gets-its-field-of-dreams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/ole-miss-band-gets-its-field-of-dreams\/","title":{"rendered":"Ole Miss Band Gets Its Field of Dreams"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

New practice facility promises to elevate performances<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The University of Mississippi<\/strong>\u2019s Pride of the South<\/strong> band is marching with renewed enthusiasm on its new $5.4 million practice field \u2014 a replica of Hollingsworth Field<\/strong>, the playing surface at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The practice field features drainage structures and lights, a director\u2019s tower, a fence, a storage building and proper field access. Construction began in August 2022 and was completed in a year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chancellor Glenn Boyce<\/strong> dedicated the facility on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, with donors, university leaders, and band members on hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThanks to the dedicated donors and supporters who inspired this world-class practice field, we\u2019re excited to usher in a new era for our 300-plus talented band members who work hard every day to contribute to the university\u2019s spirit and pride,\u201d Boyce said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re committed to supporting and fostering the success of all of our students, and this new field enhances the meaningful opportunities and experiences that our students gain as members of the Pride of The South. They deserve this investment in them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The university\u2019s commitment paired with major gifts to the project. Among donors whose combined gifts totaled $330,000 were Susan <\/strong>and Dr. Brett R. Bartlett<\/strong>, of Oxford<\/strong>; Kirsten <\/strong>and Ryan Hill<\/strong>, of Sachse, Texas<\/strong>; Linda <\/strong>and Alex MacCormack<\/strong>, of Tampa, Florida<\/strong>; Diane <\/strong>and Steve McKinney<\/strong>, of Hoover, Alabama<\/strong>; Helen Overstreet<\/strong>, of Oxford; Risa <\/strong>and Sumner Spradling<\/strong>, of Browns Summit, North Carolina<\/strong>; and the estate of Cora Mitchell<\/strong>, of DeKalb<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nancy Maria Balach<\/strong>, chair of the Department of Music<\/strong>, said she believes the field will be the nation’s best when the whole project and accompanying landscaping are completed, adding to the university\u2019s reputation as being the best place to study music education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe identity of the Pride of the South is outward-facing,” Balach said. “To now have a field that facilitates that greatness is profound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe support means so much to our department and to the legacy of the Pride of the South. It actually puts the \u2018pride\u2019 in the Pride of the South.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Randy Dale<\/strong>, associate director of bands and director of athletic bands, said he feels \u201cfortunate and blessed\u201d to work with the 310-member band.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re getting to practice the way that we will actually perform in the stadium on game days,\u201d he said. \u201cOur product will be put together and more polished than ever before. Morale is very high.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drum majors Marcus Davis<\/strong>, of Tupelo<\/strong>; Scott Grimes<\/strong>, of Corinth<\/strong>; and Jenni Weeks<\/strong>, of Pearl<\/strong>, already see an elevated sense of purpose among band members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe new facility has completely changed the atmosphere and allowed everyone to incorporate an attitude of gratitude out here,\u201d said Grimes, a senior music education major.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Davis, a sophomore biomedical engineering major, agreed, saying, \u201cPeople are so happy and excited, and the energy is very evident in the way we perform, march and play. This season, I expect our performance to be miles better than where we\u2019ve been because of the consistency of this field with its lines and coordinates.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Weeks, a sophomore music major, shares that optimism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe first day I walked out on this field, it felt like I was stepping foot in the stadium,\u201d she said. \u201cIt made me feel so excited and ready to get this season going. We\u2019ve moved a lot faster this year (with practice). I know we will be more equipped and better prepared.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grimes\u2019 gratitude extends to the many supporters who made the new field a reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts,\u201d he said. \u201cYou will not be disappointed at what\u2019s coming soon, so get ready.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The last phase of the construction \u2014 an observation deck and landscaping \u2014 is in progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Tina H. Hahn<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a>
University of Mississippi leaders watch as Randy Dale (center), associate director of bands and director of athletic bands, center, cuts the ribbon on the new $5.4 million practice facility for the Pride of the South marching band. The event took place during a daily practice for the Pride of the South, which is preparing for the Sept. 2 halftime show at the Ole Miss vs. Mercer football game. Photo by Amy Howell\/University Development<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a>
The Pride of the South marching band practices Tuesday (Aug. 29) on its new practice field, which is a replica of Hollingsworth Field at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The band members say their performances will be better prepared and polished during this football season because of the upgraded facility. Photo by Amy Howell\/University Development<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New practice facility promises to elevate performances The University of Mississippi\u2019s Pride of the South band is marching<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":123462,"featured_media":131893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17687],"tags":[283,21358,26538,26544,14702,1730,14710,5409,1174,15574,20307,26537,6600,26547,26545,5,16624,7067,4,15248,5004,5424,26539,26540,26546,26542,26543,26541,792,187,655,4033],"class_list":["post-131891","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-university-of-mississippi","tag-alabama","tag-alex-maccormack","tag-brett-r-bartlett","tag-browns-summit","tag-cora-mitchell","tag-corinth","tag-dekalb","tag-department-of-music","tag-florida","tag-glenn-boyce","tag-helen-overstreet","tag-hollingsworth-field","tag-hoover","tag-jenni-weeks","tag-marcus-davis","tag-mississippi","tag-nancy-maria-balach","tag-ole-miss","tag-oxford","tag-pearl","tag-pride-of-the-south","tag-randy-dale","tag-ryan-hill","tag-sachse","tag-scott-grimes","tag-steve-mckinney","tag-sumner-spradling","tag-tampa","tag-texas","tag-tupelo","tag-university-of-mississippi","tag-vaught-hemingway-stadium"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Dedication-1-750.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131891","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/123462"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=131891"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131891\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/131893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=131891"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=131891"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=131891"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}