Stadiums of the SEC

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Stadiums of the SEC

College football rules the South. With 14 stadiums that can sit from 40,000 to 101,000 fans, the Southeastern Conference has led all conferences in average attendance for the past 15 college-football seasons.

College football rules the South. With 14 stadiums that can sit from 40,000 to 101,000 fans, the Southeastern Conference has led all conferences in average attendance for the past 15 college-football seasons.

Built for $360,000, Sanford Stadium in Athens has seen six major expansions since it opened in 1929 - the last coming in 2003. Originally built to seat 30,0000, Sanford Stadium now seats nearly 93,000 - making it one of the largest stadiums on a university campus. Named after former university president Dr. Steadman V. Stanford, the stadium's two most recognizable features are its famous hedges surrounding the field and Uga, the Bulldogs' mascot.

Nearly nearly 101,821 fans can be heard chanting “Rooooolllll Tide, Roll" inside Bryant-Denny Stadium in the fall. The fifth largest college stadium in the nation opened in 1929, seating only 12,000. Over the last two decades, Alabama has added more than 20,000 seats and made additions to a include seven story North End Zone Glass Curtain Wall.

The 12th largest college football stadium in the nation, Auburn's Jordan-Hare Stadium seats 87,451. The stadium gets its name from Clifford Leroy Hare, a member of Auburn’s first football team, and legendary Auburn coach Ralph Jordan. Built in 1939, Jordan-Hare has seen expansion every decade since 1955.

Originally built in the 1930s, Razorbacks Stadium's original capacity was a mere 13,500 - almost one-fifth its current size of 72,000. With a video board that stands 167 feet by 38 feet, Razorbacks Stadium has the largest scoreboard in the SEC - third largest among stadiums used by college football teams.

Affectionately known as "The Swamp," Ben Hill Griffin Stadium first opened in 1930. The then-called Florida Field held nearly 22,000 before addition in 1950 expanded seating capacity by 10,000. It has feature AstroTurf and a grass field. Renamed in 1991 after a donor, the Gainesville landmark has packed more than 88,000 fans every game since 1989.

Kentucky's Commonwealth Stadium replaced Stoll Field in 1973. The 67,600-seat stadium has grown from its original capacity of 57,800. Among the its recent additions is one of the biggest video boards in a college stadium.

Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La., opened with a capacity of 12,000 in 1924. It now averages more than 92,000 fans on Saturdays in the fall. By this summer a planned expansion to seat about 100,000 fans will make it the seventh-largest college football stadium in the country.

Named after Judge William Hemingway, the chairman of the University’s Committee on Athletes and legendary coach John Vaught, Vaught-Hemingway Stadium is one of the oldest in college football. Since it was built in 1915 - with a seating capacity of 24,000 - the stadium has not seen the expansion other SEC stadiums. Stadium capacity is now 60,850.

Scott Field, the second oldest college football stadium in Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), has been the home of the Mississippi State Bulldogs for more than nine decades. Originally built in 1914 with a seating capacity of less than 20,000, it now seats 55,082. Originally named after Don M. Scott, an Olympic sprinter and one of the first football stars for the Bulldogs, the stadium was renamed Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field after donor Floyd Davis Wade helped fund a $30 million project that included the addition of 7,000 seats in 2002. The Bulldogs plan a further expansion that will add 6,000 more seats by 2014.

Missouri's stadium - named after former Tiger Coach and Athletic Director Don Faurot - debuted in 1926 and had an original capacity of 25,000. Expansions added decks on both sides of the playing, bringing seating capacity to 71,004. Since joining the SEC, Missouri is adding more seating and when complete - in 2015 - will make Faurot Field the ninth largest stadium in the conference.

Nicknamed, "the Cockpit," the Gamecocks began playing at what was once called Memorial Stadium in 1934. Stadium capacity was 17,600 when it opened. Renamed after benefactor Mrs. Martha Williams Brice in 1972, the stadium now seats more than 88,000.

Built on the shore of the Tennessee River in 1921, Neyland Stadium could only seat 3,200. In the nearly 20 expansions since, it now seats 100,011. And they are not done, two more phases of expansions will bring seating capacity over 101,000 by next season.

Kyle Field was constructed in two phases, 1927 and 1929, and was named after Edwin J. Kyle, the athletic council President and the Dean of Agriculture. Originally built with a seating capacity of about 32,000, Kyle Field now sits nearly 83,000. Three, 3-tier grandstands are located on the north, east and west sides of the field, famously hailed as "Home of the 12th Man" - a named used for Aggie fans since the early 20th century. Texas A&M unveiled plans in February to expand Kyle Field. The $425 million expansion will enclose Kyle Field, pushing seating capacity to 102,500, making it the largest stadium in the SEC and the third largest in college football by the 2015 season.

Vanderbilt Stadium originally had a capacity of 20,000 when it opened in 1922. The stadium now seats 41,000 and includes seating for 500 in a grass berm. Prior to the 2012 season, the grass field was replaced with Fieldturf.

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College football rules the South. With 14 stadiums that can sit from 40,000 to 101,000 fans, the Southeastern Conference has led all conferences in average attendance for the past 15 college-football seasons.

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