The Grove (Ole Miss)

Originally, gathering in The Grove was an informal tailgating get-together when most serious pre-game socializing took place at the fraternity and sorority houses. By the 1950s, the Grove started to become its own pregame tradition. The Grove Society posts a strict schedule for the event. ==Game day==

Described as "the Holy Grail of tailgating sites" by Sporting News, The Grove comes to life for Ole Miss Rebels football home games with typically over 100,000 fans. Fans arrive often around noon the day before the game (campus rule is no one allowed to "stake their claim" before 7:30 pm, which is strictly enforced by campus police) to grab their spot in The Grove. This usually serene area of campus becomes a sea of red, white and blue tents. However, most of the tents are set up by professional tailgate vendors and not the students or families themselves. Ole Miss students generally dress in their Sunday best: Men wear slacks, button-up shirts, bow ties, Sperry Top Siders, and coats while women wear cocktail dresses or brightly colored sundresses and high heel shoes. Some older fans also dress in this style. ==Legendary==

ESPN ranked The Grove as the number two college football tailgating spot in the country. In its review, it said: A common saying by "Grovers" is "We may not win every game, but we've never lost a party." He continued: The Columbia Missourian newspaper called The Grove, "the mecca of tailgating in American sports." == Walk of Champions ==

When Billy Brewer became head football coach in 1983, he was looking for a way to give fame to the football team. He would take them on a different route each game. Brewer would walk the team from Kinard Hall, the athletic dormitory, across campus to Vaught–Hemingway Stadium. ==Grove Bowl==

The Grove Bowl is the name of the annual spring intrasquad scrimmage in Vaught–Hemingway Stadium. The game is played between the "Red" squad and the "Blue" squad. Ole Miss football players are assigned to a squad by the coaches and then play a full-contact game. Tickets are sold to the game. A school-record Grove Bowl crowd of 28,375 fans attended the 2009 Grove Bowl. Tailgating in The Grove also takes place at the Grove Bowl. ==References==