Ladd Peebles Stadium
Encyclopedia
Ladd Peebles Stadium is a stadium
in Mobile, Alabama
. It is primarily used for American football
, and is the home field for the Senior Bowl
, the GoDaddy.com Bowl, the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic, and the University of South Alabama Jaguars
. It opened in 1948 and has a seating capacity
of 40,646.
It was originally named for Ernest F. Ladd, a local banking magnate who died in 1941. In 1997, it was renamed to honor E.B. Peebles, a civic leader who was instrumental in the revitalization of the Senior Bowl.
In addition to football, the stadium is also used for concerts (maximum capacity 50,000), boxing
matches, high school graduations, trade shows, and festivals. Ed Sullivan
, Jimmy Buffett
, and many other entertainers have performed at Ladd Peebles Stadium.
and the Vanderbilt Commodores
on October 2, 1948 which ended in a 14–14 tie. From 1948 to 1968, with the exceptions of 1960 and 1962, the Crimson Tide played one game per year in Ladd Stadium. In 1958, legendary head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant coached his first game as Alabama's head coach in Ladd Stadium when the Crimson Tide fell 13-3 to LSU.
Ladd-Peebles Stadium also played host to numerous other major college games over the years. Auburn played eight games at Ladd from 1948-55, playing the likes of Clemson
, Florida
and Ole Miss
. The University of Southern Mississippi was also a consistent Ladd Stadium tenant, as the Golden Eagles played 17 games there from 1950 through 1974. Southern Mississippi's opponents included schools such as Texas A&M, Florida State and Alabama.
In 1951, the new Senior Bowl
moved from Jacksonville to Mobile, where it has been played in Ladd-Peebles ever since.
Beginning in 1974, it began hosting the Gulf Coast Classic, a Alabama State University
Homecoming game against a fellow Southwestern Athletic Conference
opponent.
In 1988, the stadium hosted the first-ever Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic, an annual football event that features the best senior high school players and top collegiate prospects from Mississippi against the best from Alabama. Formerly played in June, the contest is now an annual event held at Ladd-Peebles the second Saturday in December.
In 1997, Ladd Peebles Stadium underwent a $8.1 million renovation that resulted in a new press box featuring a 120-seat club level and luxury suites, new scoreboards, new PA and lighting systems, new locker rooms, new restrooms, an expansion of the concourse areas, and new concession stands, as well as the stadium offices.
In 1999, the stadium hosted the inaugural Mobile Bowl, which continues today as the GoDaddy.com Bowl. Formerly matching teams from the Mid-American Conference
and Conference USA
, the bowl announced a new agreement in 2009 to annually feature teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference
and the Mid-American Conference beginning with the 2010 game. The agreement, however, was canceled after one year and the bowl's matchup now consists of the Mid-American Conference facing the Sun Belt Conference
.
In 2004, the stadium selected and installed FieldTurf
as its new playing surface.
On December 6, 2008, the Board of Trustees at the University of South Alabama
approved adding football to its intercollegiate athletics program. The move came with the announcement that the team would call Ladd-Peebles Stadium home for at least seven years.
The stadium underwent a $2.2 million facelift which also includes the construction of a 11 luxury sky boxes on the stadium's west side. The project was finished at the beginning of the 2009 season
Stadium
A modern stadium is a place or venue for outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit and view the event.)Pausanias noted that for about half a century the only event...
in Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
. It is primarily used for American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, and is the home field for the Senior Bowl
Senior Bowl
The Senior Bowl is a post-season college football exhibition game played in Mobile, Alabama which showcases the best NFL Draft prospects of those collegiate players who have completed their eligibility. First played in 1950 in Jacksonville, Florida, the game moved to Mobile's Ladd Peebles Stadium...
, the GoDaddy.com Bowl, the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic, and the University of South Alabama Jaguars
South Alabama Jaguars football
The South Alabama Jaguars football program, established in 2009, will be a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I FBS and the Sun Belt Conference in 2013.-History:...
. It opened in 1948 and has a seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
of 40,646.
It was originally named for Ernest F. Ladd, a local banking magnate who died in 1941. In 1997, it was renamed to honor E.B. Peebles, a civic leader who was instrumental in the revitalization of the Senior Bowl.
In addition to football, the stadium is also used for concerts (maximum capacity 50,000), boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
matches, high school graduations, trade shows, and festivals. Ed Sullivan
Ed Sullivan
Edward Vincent "Ed" Sullivan was an American entertainment writer and television host, best known as the presenter of the TV variety show The Ed Sullivan Show. The show was broadcast from 1948 to 1971 , which made it one of the longest-running variety shows in U.S...
, Jimmy Buffett
Jimmy Buffett
James William "Jimmy" Buffett is a singer-songwriter, author, entrepreneur, and film producer. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffett's musical hits include "Margaritaville" , and "Come Monday"...
, and many other entertainers have performed at Ladd Peebles Stadium.
History
The stadium was constructed in 1948 with private funding from a local banker wishing to create a permanent honor to his mentor, Ernest F. Ladd. The stadium's first game was a meeting between the Alabama Crimson TideAlabama Crimson Tide football
|TeamName = Alabama football |Image = Alabama Crimson Tide Logo.svg |ImageSize = 110 |Helmet = Alabama Football.png |ImageSize2 = 150 |CurrentSeason = 2011 Alabama Crimson Tide football team...
and the Vanderbilt Commodores
Vanderbilt Commodores
The Vanderbilt Commodores are the NCAA athletic teams of Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. The university fields 16 varsity teams , 14 of which compete in the Southeastern Conference...
on October 2, 1948 which ended in a 14–14 tie. From 1948 to 1968, with the exceptions of 1960 and 1962, the Crimson Tide played one game per year in Ladd Stadium. In 1958, legendary head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant coached his first game as Alabama's head coach in Ladd Stadium when the Crimson Tide fell 13-3 to LSU.
Ladd-Peebles Stadium also played host to numerous other major college games over the years. Auburn played eight games at Ladd from 1948-55, playing the likes of Clemson
Clemson Tigers football
The Clemson Tigers football team is an American football team from Clemson University in South Carolina. It competes in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference...
, Florida
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football team represents the University of Florida in the sport of American football. The Florida Gators compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletics Association and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference...
and Ole Miss
Ole Miss Rebels football
The football history of the University of Mississippi , includes the formation of the first football team in the state and is 26th on the list of college football's all-time winning programs...
. The University of Southern Mississippi was also a consistent Ladd Stadium tenant, as the Golden Eagles played 17 games there from 1950 through 1974. Southern Mississippi's opponents included schools such as Texas A&M, Florida State and Alabama.
In 1951, the new Senior Bowl
Senior Bowl
The Senior Bowl is a post-season college football exhibition game played in Mobile, Alabama which showcases the best NFL Draft prospects of those collegiate players who have completed their eligibility. First played in 1950 in Jacksonville, Florida, the game moved to Mobile's Ladd Peebles Stadium...
moved from Jacksonville to Mobile, where it has been played in Ladd-Peebles ever since.
Beginning in 1974, it began hosting the Gulf Coast Classic, a Alabama State University
Alabama State University
Alabama State University, founded 1867, is a historically black university located in Montgomery, Alabama. ASU is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund.- History :...
Homecoming game against a fellow Southwestern Athletic Conference
Southwestern Athletic Conference
The Southwestern Athletic Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, which is made up of historically black universities in the Southern United States...
opponent.
In 1988, the stadium hosted the first-ever Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic, an annual football event that features the best senior high school players and top collegiate prospects from Mississippi against the best from Alabama. Formerly played in June, the contest is now an annual event held at Ladd-Peebles the second Saturday in December.
In 1997, Ladd Peebles Stadium underwent a $8.1 million renovation that resulted in a new press box featuring a 120-seat club level and luxury suites, new scoreboards, new PA and lighting systems, new locker rooms, new restrooms, an expansion of the concourse areas, and new concession stands, as well as the stadium offices.
In 1999, the stadium hosted the inaugural Mobile Bowl, which continues today as the GoDaddy.com Bowl. Formerly matching teams from the Mid-American Conference
Mid-American Conference
The Mid-American Conference is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I college athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twelve full member schools are in Ohio and Michigan, with single members...
and Conference USA
Conference USA
Conference USA, officially abbreviated C-USA, is a college athletic conference whose member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports...
, the bowl announced a new agreement in 2009 to annually feature teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
and the Mid-American Conference beginning with the 2010 game. The agreement, however, was canceled after one year and the bowl's matchup now consists of the Mid-American Conference facing the Sun Belt Conference
Sun Belt Conference
The Sun Belt Conference is a college athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Its football teams participate in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , the higher of two levels of Division I football competition . The Sun Belt has member institutions...
.
In 2004, the stadium selected and installed FieldTurf
FieldTurf
FieldTurf is a brand of artificial turf playing surface. It is manufactured and installed by the FieldTurf Tarkett division of Tarkett Inc., based in Calhoun, Georgia, USA. In the late 1990s, the artificial surface changed the industry with a design intended to replicate real grass...
as its new playing surface.
On December 6, 2008, the Board of Trustees at the University of South Alabama
University of South Alabama
The University of South Alabama is a public, doctoral-level university in Mobile, Alabama, USA. It was created by the Alabama Legislature in 1963, and replaced existing extension programs operated in Mobile by the University of Alabama. No other areas of the state were willing to support such a...
approved adding football to its intercollegiate athletics program. The move came with the announcement that the team would call Ladd-Peebles Stadium home for at least seven years.
The stadium underwent a $2.2 million facelift which also includes the construction of a 11 luxury sky boxes on the stadium's west side. The project was finished at the beginning of the 2009 season