NASHVILLE, Tenn. —Vanderbilt University today dedicated the all-new south end zone at First Bank Stadium, celebrating completion of one of the historic Vandy United campaign’s cornerstone projects. Made possible by thousands of Vandy United donors, and paired with the north end zone enhancements introduced last season, the reimagined south end zone embodies in spirit and substance the university’s commitment to the student-athlete and fan experiences.
Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier, Vice Chancellor and Athletic Director Candice Storey Lee, Vice Chancellor John Lutz and E. Bronson Ingram Chair in Football Clark Lea addressed a large crowd of National Commodore Club members during the celebration. They were joined in remarks by Vanderbilt Board of Trust member and Vandy United donor Jennifer Frist, BS’93.
“Today we celebrate a cornerstone of Vandy United,” Diermeier said. “This remarkable facility transforms the game-day experience for our supporters and positions our student-athletes to succeed. When Candice and I announced Vandy United, one of the things we said is we wanted to make this a destination for the best people and create an environment where they can succeed. That is exactly what we have done, and that is exactly what we will do. Clark Lea’s Commodores embody these values on the field, turning Vandy United’s vision into a reality. Our supporters embody that vision from the stands.”
Football’s new locker room in the south end zone facility (Brendan Ross/Vanderbilt)
Following Thursday’s ceremony, guests were invited to be among the first to tour the newly-completed space. Completely replacing the old seating bowl, the south end zone includes a multi-use facility spanning more than 130,000 square feet, a new football locker room, six new premium seating areas and a renovated concourse that fully encloses the stadium. Other amenities include new video and ribbon boards, a team store and fan-specific spaces like mother’s, sensory and guest services rooms.
“In this amazing facility, we’re celebrating a game-day experience like our fans have never before enjoyed—but certainly deserve,” Lee said. “We’re also celebrating what’s possible. This is what we are capable of, together. That couldn’t be more important as we enter this new era of college athletics. In a more collaborative era than ever before, we control our future.”
Lea spoke just days after his No. 18 Commodores improved to 4-0 with a 70-21 win against Georgia State in front of the second sellout crowd in as many home games this season at FirstBank Stadium. In addition to the team’s most points in a game since 1918, Saturday’s game marked the first time since 1956 that Vanderbilt took the field in September while ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.
“On behalf of everyone who has been here and lived this and believed in it and was desperate for someone to step up and say we can do this at the highest level, thank you, Chancellor Diermeier, for your leadership and your aggressive vision and how you keep pushing,” Lea said. “And as the chancellor said, this may be the close of one chapter, but it is not the end. The challenge I have for the room is, is this going to be where we stop? Or can we continue to be aggressive and reach for more. Because, honestly, I came here not for one season, not for the energy of 4-0. I came here to win a national championship. And I have belief because I have the leadership ahead of me that is clearing the path for that.”
Frist spoke on behalf of the thousands of donors who made the south end zone project possible and continue to support Vandy United’s ongoing vision, following on Board of Trust member John R. Ingram’s inspirational lead gift that helped launch the campaign more than four years ago. Longtime Vanderbilt supporters, Jennifer and Billy Frist’s transformational Vandy United gift established the Frist Athletics Village, which includes the historic football stadium—known as FirstBank Stadium since Vanderbilt and FirstBank, Nashville neighbors with more than 250 years of Tennessee history between them, entered into a long-term naming rights and campus collaboration agreement.
“To stand here today and see what has already been accomplished by uplifting student-athletes and uniting the community is thrilling,” Frist said. “Now we have an elevated game-day experience that we are proud to show the SEC and a university we are proud to show the world. The response speaks for itself. People now believe in Vanderbilt athletics. Today is a celebration of what happens when we all participate and pay it forward. So I encourage you all to get involved or involved again. Billy and I believe this is a great time to help Vanderbilt be Vanderbilt.”
Since the launch of Vandy United signaled the university’s redoubled commitment to giving student-athletes the facilities and support to succeed, Commodores have matched the collaborative community energy that made projects like the south end zone possible by reaching new heights of competitive excellence.
- Bowling won its third NCAA championship, and Commodores Gordon Sargent (men’s golf) and Veronica Fraley (track and field) won individual NCAA championships.
- Tim Corbin’s VandyBoys won two more SEC Tournament titles, played for a national title in their fifth College World Series appearance and had four more student-athletes selected in the first round of the MLB Draft.
- Restoring Memorial Magic, men’s and women’s basketball returned to the national rankings and competed in the NCAA Tournament in the same season for the first time in more than a decade.
- Men’s and women’s golf advanced to multiple NCAA Championships, with Thomas F. Roush, M.D. and Family Men’s Golf Head Coach Scott Limbaugh’s team also winning back-to-back SEC titles.
- Soccer reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 for the first time in program history, while varsity volleyball returned to campus after 45 years in unforgettable fashion with an outdoor match on Wyatt Lawn.
- And former Commodores were part of MLB, NBA, NFL, NWSL and Serie A Femminile championships, competed and medaled in the Olympics and will help lead the United States into action this weekend in the Ryder Cup.
In addition to this season’s early success, the football team won last season’s Birmingham Bowl, rallied the Nashville community around its journey and brought national attention to Vanderbilt as one of the subjects of Netflix’s Any Given Sunday docuseries.
“We can be the blueprint,” Lee said. “We can sustain competitive excellence and foster deep affinity. And we can do it with our values and identity intact. As long as we’re all in this, together, we’re just getting started. We will be relentless.”
A key initiative in the university’s Dare to Grow campaign, Vandy United has raised more than $350 million. The university continues work on major facilities and operational enhancements, including the Frist Athletics Village and ambitious renovations planned for Hawkins Field. Through the Ingram Center for Student-Athlete Success and other efforts, the campaign has also funded scholarships and support programs to ensure that Vanderbilt student-athletes are poised for success on and off the field.
“This is 130,000 square feet of what I think we can all agree is a fabulous space,” Lutz said. “It’s revolutionary in the context of Vanderbilt and this stadium’s progression as a venue. I’d like to thank our corporate sponsors, FirstBank and SRM Concrete. I’d also like to thank all the members of the National Commodore Club and our other athletics boosters and supporters. And a very special thanks, because they were involved early and very substantially, to the Frist and Ingram families.”
