The University of Mississippi Athletics
The Grove
6/21/1999 | Trads
Vaught-Hemingway Stadium |
When Billy Brewer became head football coach at Ole Miss in 1983, he was searching for a way to allow his team to experience the atmosphere and pageantry Rebel fans enjoyed in The Grove while tailgating on gameday. The Grove is a 10-acre grassy plot of ground in the center of campus which is heavily shaded by large oak trees.
Taking a different route two hours before kickoff each home game Saturday, Brewer would walk with the team from Kinard Hall, the athletic dormitory, across campus to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
In 1985, Brewer started going the same route each Saturday as the team would break The Grove on the east side of the Student Union and then proceed down a sidewalk which runs through The Grove.
Ole Miss fans fight for position on both sides of the sidewalk and greet the players with loud cheers. The braver fans even reach out and touch the players as they pass before them.
What has become a tradition on Ole Miss football Saturdays continues under fourth-year head coach Tommy Tuberville.
The entire Grove experience at Ole Miss is truly one of the outstanding college football traditions in the South and nationwide.