Athletics

"Change" will be the operative word for Mississippi State fans as they visit Scott Field on the campus this fall. Some of the changes will be readily apparent, some a little more subtle. In both respects, however, Bulldog fans should be prepared to alter their normal game-day activities.

Construction to enlarge the east side of Scott Field, adding 50 skyboxes, 1,700 club level seats, and a 7,000-seat upper deck, will be very noticeable to State faithful. The construction has eliminated Alumni Drive on the east side of Scott Field and the lay-down site has taken away three Bulldog Club parking areas in the immediate vicinity of the stadium.

Bulldog Club Lots 2, 4, and 6 will be relocated to Lot 24, the parking lot directly behind McArthur Hall, just northwest of the stadium. McArthur Hall is the former athletic residence hall on State’s campus. The east side handicap parking, which was located on Alumni Drive, will move to the Briscoe, Garner, Freeman Lot, just east of the stadium off Barr Road.

All other reserved parking lots will remain in their same location, including the handicap lot on the west side of the stadium. Open game-day parking will also stay in the same position, near the intramural tennis courts to the south of Scott Field, and surrounding Humphrey Coliseum to the north.

There will be a slight alteration in the game-day traffic flow. MSU athletic officials will close Complex Road at Highway 82 coming onto the campus from the north. Complex Road is the former construction entrance to campus that winds between the softball field, the Bryan Athletic Administration Building, and the Shira Athletic Complex, terminating behind Humphrey Coliseum. All other routes into campus the day of a football game will remain the same.

Thanks to favorable summer weather, work on the stadium expansion at Scott Field is progressing slightly ahead of schedule. Made possible by a major contribution from AFLAC co-founder and director Davis Wade, the $21 million east-side addition will expand Scott Field seating capacity to 52,000. The project, which was initiated last February, is expected to be completed in October 2001.

Entrance to Scott Field will be adjusted due to the construction. Access to the east side will be limited to gates on the north and south ends only. There will be no operative gates in the center of the east side. Students should enter the stadium from the north side, while general public, faculty, and staff may gain entry from either the north or south gates.

Non-student east side tickets also will be honored on the west side. Those patrons may use the walkway around the north end zone to claim their east side seats.

Exit flow following State’s games also will continue in the same manner as the past. Stone Boulevard south from the stadium will be two lanes going south to Blackjack Road, which will be two lanes headed west to Locksley Way. University Drive will be two lanes going west to Montgomery Street.

University officials also have reminded fans that cowbells will not be permitted inside the football stadium, in keeping with the Southeastern Conference rule prohibiting artificial noisemakers.