The Senior Bowl announced today they will move to South Alabama's newly constructed stadium just a few miles to the Northwest of Ladd-Peebles Stadium where the game has been held for years.
From a release:
“The Reese’s Senior Bowl Board of Trustees voted unanimously on March 4, 2020 to agree to a multi-year deal with the University of South Alabama to play the nationally televised Reese’s Senior Bowl game and its week of practices at Hancock Whitney Stadium, a brand new 25,000-seat state-of-the-art stadium located on the campus of the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama, beginning in 2021,” said Angus R. Cooper II, Chairman and President of the Senior Bowl Board of Trustees.
Hancock Whitney Stadium offers a fan and football experience unrivaled by any stadium in the region. Fans will enjoy premiere food and beverage selections inside the stadium, acers of grassy pre-game tailgating and RV areas around the stadium, and thousands of reserved on-campus parking spaces supported by fan shuttle buses. For the first time in the game’s history, fans and NFL personnel will have access to chair- and bench-back seating, indoor and outdoor private suites, and premium club and loge seats with complimentary access to the indoor club level food and beverage. Fans and NFL participants will enjoy the state-of-the-art technologies of Hancock Whitney Stadium, including the mega video board and sound system, an easy-to-use online seat and parking space ordering system, and an option for paperless entry into the stadium. NFL coaches, scouts, and players will be best accommodated by the University of South Alabama’s pristine weightlifting and sports medicine amenities, first class indoor and outdoor practice facilities, and brand-new locker room and meeting areas.
The Reese’s Senior Bowl, the nation’s most prestigious college all-star game and the start of the annual NFL draft, is owned by the Mobile Sports and Arts Association and was played in Mobile’s Ladd-Peebles Stadium from 1951 to 2020. The 2019 game produced 93 overall draft picks, which represented 37 percent of the 2019 NFL draft, including 10 first-round selections and 40 players taken in the first three rounds. The game has featured legendary coaches like Don Shula and Tom Landry and 54 former Senior Bowl players are enshrined in the Pro Football Hall-of-Fame, including such all-time greats as Joe Namath, Walter Payton, Dan Marino, Bo Jackson, and Brett Favre.
The 2021 Reese’s Senior Bowl will be played January 30, 2021 and televised nationally on NFL Network. Further updates regarding game tickets will be released in the near future at www.seniorbowl.com.
Chairman and President of the Senior Bowl Board of Trustees, Angus R. Cooper II: “For decades Ladd-Peebles Stadium served the Senior Bowl well and as we now write the next chapter in the game’s rich history at Hancock Whitney Stadium, we do so in a state-of-the art facility that provides for the best fan experience for our community and the great NFL staff and players who make our game possible.”
Reese’s Senior Bowl Executive Director, Jim Nagy: “We owe it to our community and players to host the nation’s premier college football all-star game in the region’s most advanced stadium and this transition to Hancock Whitney Stadium will best ensure our game resides in Mobile, Alabama for decades to come.”
“The new stadium at South Alabama will provide fans, sponsors, and NFL personnel with great on-campus parking and tailgating, premier food and beverage options, and a great overall experience that will be enhanced by unbeatable premium seating options and today’s newest stadium technologies”.