Kenan now an ACC contender

Legend has it that Frank Kenan said in the early 1930s that Kenan Stadium could never rise above the pine trees surrounding it.

The unwritten rule has put a stranglehold on expansion over the years. But the Rams Club finally has the plans — and the money — to do it.

The Blue Zone, a $70 million project, will bring in 20 suites and more than 2,600 club seats to Kenan. The expansion will not only boost the attendance, but also UNC’s ranking among other ACC football stadiums.

“I think Kenan Staidum has been, and will continue to be, one of the finest facilities in the country,” Athletic Director Dick Baddour said. “It will be first rate. It’ll be very much appreciated by our fans.”

Opening in 1927, Kenan is the second-oldest football stadium in the ACC. The 20 planned suites will be the second-fewest in the conference, but the club seats total will be short only to the University of Miami’s Sun Life Stadium, the stadium of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.

In 2002, ESPN college football analyst Mel Kiper Jr. listed Kenan as the third most scenic college football stadium in the nation, saying it’s a “picture postcard setting any time of the year.”

Kenan will have video scoreboards on both ends of the field. Baddour said the old video scoreboard has been disassembled and both video boards will be brand new.

Only three other ACC stadiums — Florida State’s Doak Campbell Stadium, Sun Life Stadium and Maryland’s Byrd Stadium — boast two video scoreboards.

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.