Dressing up for game day

North Carolina football fans are going to have some new things to look forward to on game day this coming fall.

The Sports Marketing department at UNC has been working during the summer on changes in and around Kenan Stadium designed to enhance the overall experience of fans at UNC football games.

“The No. 1 goal is to add to the stadium experience on game day in a Carolina way … we don’t want anything too outlandish,” said Michael Beale, director of Sports Marketing at UNC. Adding to that stadium experience, fans can expect some changes to the outside appearance of the stadium.

“We want to dress up Kenan with some of our great players, pictures and banners commemorating some of the great games that we’ve had here at Carolina, our 25 bowl games and the rich football history here at Carolina,” he said.

Fans can expect plaques commemorating some of the great players at UNC, including Lawrence Taylor, Julius Peppers and others.

Landmark victories, such as UNC’s 2004 wins over longtime rival N.C. State and Miami — the team’s first over a Top 5 opponent — also will enjoy prominent space on the outside walls of the stadium.

The inside of the stadium also will feature an updated look.

“We are going to redesign and update the retired jerseys on the upper deck fascia to bring them more into the current Carolina scheme, as well as incorporating our appearance at 25 bowls,” said Norwood Teague, associate athletic director of sports marketing.

Beale and Teague denied that the additions of traditional football powerhouses Miami and Virginia Tech, as well as perennial bowl attendee Boston College, had anything to do with the dressing up of the stadium.

“This has no relation at all to the new ACC; this is really about just making Kenan more accessible and attractive to the fans,” Teague said.

In addition to these immediate changes, officials have been working on some of the more long-term issues surrounding fans’ experiences at UNC football games.

“We really want to improve the ways that fans get to the games,” Beale said.

“We understand the inherent difficulties with parking at Kenan, so we are trying to highlight other options, such as the Tar Heel Express. The Express is really the easiest way to get to and from the stadium to your car in a timely fashion on game days.

“It’s a great option for tailgaters, who, because of Kenan’s unique location right on campus, might have trouble otherwise. We don’t want the image of a place you can’t tailgate here at UNC.”

An issue that might not figure as prominently in the future is the expansion of seating in the stadium.

“When the timing is right, and the future is right, you know, maybe then that is going to be something that we can look at for Kenan Stadium,” Beale said.

Teague agreed that a proposal to expand seating could be taken up in the future when it’s needed.

“The most important thing to address is the parking issue, but in the next three or five years, that is definitely something that might come up. As we continue to get more people in seats, seating is going to be an issue. But we’re still very far away from that at this point.”

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.