Click here to see Dudy Noble Field, Polk-DeMent Stadium's main grandstand seating diagram.
There is no place like home, especially when you're the Mississippi State University Baseball Bulldogs and home has room enough for nearly 15,000 of the nation's most avid baseball fans.
That home is Dudy Noble Field, Polk-DeMent Stadium, long regarded as one of the biggest and best campus venues for college baseball in America.
The field is named in honor of longtime MSU baseball coach, athletic director and ABCA Hall of Famer C.R. "Dudy" Noble. And on April 27, 1998 the facility was renamed Dudy Noble Field, Polk-DeMent Stadium, honoring another ABCA Hall of Famer, then-retired Bulldog skipper Ron Polk and the late Gordon DeMent, a successful businessman and longtime fan of the Baseball Bulldogs from Indianola, Miss.
Huge enthusiastic crowds are synonymous with Dudy Noble Field, Polk-DeMent Stadium. 
The baseball facility has twice hosted crowds in excess of 14,000, including an NCAA on-campus-record 14,991 that watched the Bulldogs take on SEC Eastern Division rival Florida in a Saturday twinbill in 1989. And on 15 other occasions, including last season's MSU-Florida game (10,617), crowd totals have eclipsed the 10,000 mark.
Mississippi State has been playing baseball at the present stadium site for 37 years, dating back to April 3, 1967 and a 5-3 Mississippi State win over Illinois Wesleyan. It has served as the home to seven Southeastern Conference championship teams, has twice hosted NCAA District III tournaments (1973 and 1974), five SEC tournaments (1979, 1981, 1983, 1988 and 1995) and 11 NCAA Regional tournaments (1979, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1997, 2000 and 2003).
What today stands as one of college baseball's top facilities grew in large part from the labors of Tom D'Armi, chief assistant coach to longtime Bulldog skipper Paul Gregory. When the tin-roofed grandstand and bleachers seating more than 2,000 were moved to the stadium's present site in the mid 1960s, it became D'Armi's task to ?build? the new field. The task of hauling in and leveling top soil, planting and nurturing the turf, building the bullpens, placing signs on the outfield fence and planting the cedar trees beyond the outfield fence, fell to D'Armi. The hard work didn't go unrecognized. The field was subsequently honored by the U.S. Groundskeeper's Association as the nation's best maintained athletic field.
The aura that surrounds the Bulldogs' home diamond and improvements at the facility have followed a steady pace over the years.
In 1971, thanks to the generosity of the late E.B. ?Dutch? McCool, a former MSU baseball player and one of the founding fathers of Holiday Inns, Inc., Mississippi State took the lead in the Southeastern Conference with the installation of a lighting system. The advent of night baseball in Starkville helped spur the growth and popularity of Bulldog baseball.
Later, the well-manicured turf was enhanced with the addition of a drainage and sprinkler system. Further additions to the baseball plant included an expanded scoreboard and animation-equipped message center, new batting ranges and the purchase of an infield tarp.
Mississippi State hosted its first SEC Baseball Tournament and NCAA Regional in 1979, setting attendance marks and opening eyes along the way.
The crowds mushroomed further in the 1980s as future Major League stars Jeff Brantley, Will Clark, Rafael Palmeiro and Bobby Thigpen helped the 1985 Bulldogs win the SEC championship, host and win another regional championship and earn MSU's highest national finish, a tie for third place at the NCAA College World Series.
It was apparent that the interest in Bulldog Baseball had easily out-grown its cozy Dudy Noble Field facility.
Two years after that magical ?’85 season Mississippi State unveiled the most dramatic advancement for its baseball facilities ever ?€? an impressive $3.5 million project that would give MSU the biggest baseball stadium in the league. The new facility at Dudy Noble Field, built in less than nine months, featured an impressive concrete grandstand structure with 3,700 maroon theater-style seats, a spacious elevated press box, restroom, ticket, souvenir and concession-vending facilities, and a well-appointed 40-locker dressing room and team area. A pair of 1,500-seat bleachers that once overlooked the end zones at MSU's Scott Field were refurbished and put in place along the foul lines, raising seating capacity at Dudy Noble Field to 6,700.
The Bulldog Club, MSU's athletic fund-raising body, shouldered a $2 million bonding program to account for the biggest portion of the project, with the remainder financed by alumni and friends through the sale of $1,000, $500 and $250 chairback seats, honorary deeds to plots of Dudy Noble Field turf, and other general donations.
The facility was constructed on schedule by W.G. Yates & Sons of Philadelphia, Miss. It was later chosen by Sports Illustrated as the best play to watch college baseball and became a model for future college baseball facilities. The ?new? Dudy Noble Field facility also helped ignite a drive to update baseball facilities throughout the SEC.
The expanded capacity at the stadium helped increase MSU's annual baseball season ticket base to more than 5,000, virtually assuring Mississippi State of a place among national leaders in college baseball attendance every year.
An additional permanent concession stand was added near the first base entrance to the stadium in 1989, and a year later, the cinder warning track at the outfield fence was extended to completely encircle the playing field. That project, along with the installation of a six-foot high padded outfield fence, was made possible by a donation by former MSU All-American and Major League standout Will Clark.
In 1993, Mississippi State completed the construction of an indoor batting range under the first base grandstand, a sorely-needed addition made possible by a gift from best-selling author John Grisham, an MSU alumnus and an avid fan of Bulldog Baseball.
Mississippi State's baseball home underwent another major change at the turn of the century. In August, 1998, construction got under way on an ambitious project that would add 18 skyboxes and more than 600 additional chairback seats to the already impressive-looking concrete grandstand structure. The project was funded through the sale of the new stadium seats and the leasing of the luxury skyboxes. At completion during the 2000 season, permanent seating capacity at Dudy Noble Field had eclipsed the 7,000 mark.
The aura of Mississippi State baseball at Dudy Noble Field is certainly not confined to the loyal legions in the impressive grandstand, pro-style luxury skyboxes and bleachers. In fact, some of the more highly-prized seats at Bulldog Baseball games are found beyond the outfield fence in the ?Left Field Lounge?. Waiting lists await those in search of one of nearly 75 renewable season parking passes for an assigned position in one of three rows beyond the outfield fence. There, a colorful assortment of pickup trucks, motor homes, and trailers ?€? most equipped with barbecue grills ?€? line the outfield fence, completing a circle of humanity at Dudy Noble Field. What began in the late 1960s as a popular gathering spot for baseball-loving MSU students now forms college baseball's largest tailgate party.
Standing room only crowds have twice surpassed the 14,000 mark and actual turnstile attendance has reached five-digit totals 17 times. SEC weekend games typically draw the largest crowds, giving rise to huge weekend gatherings. In 2002 the three-game MSU-Georgia series attracted an SEC series-record 25,868 fans at Dudy Noble Field.
Still, the improvements, some highly visible and others perhaps not so noticeable, continue at Dudy Noble Field. The infield and portions of the adjoining outfield areas have in recent years been resodded, the infield dirt replaced, and the pitcher's mound rebuilt.
The green padding on the facing of the stadium wall was replaced prior to the 2002 season, and a new flooring material has been installed in both dugouts and the tunnels leading to them. The Bulldog locker room has been completely recarpeted, improved lighting added and new lockers installed, one of many projects funded by the four-year old MSU Dugout Club. Prior to the start of the 2003 season 46-foot ?major league? foul poles were installed along with a colorful ?wall of fame? wind screen on the outfield fence.
Early in the 2004 season a speaker system was added near the concession stand area, while a new state-of-the-art scoreboard/message center was installed in the middle of the season beyond the existing scoreboard.
Also begun during the final week of the 2004 home season was the installation of wrought iron fencing and gates beneath the grandstand.
Additional stadium improvements are on the drawing board, all part of Mississippi State's commitment to maintain Dudy Noble Field, Polk-DeMent Stadium as the consummate collegiate ballpark for players and spectators alike.
DNF QUICK FACTS
- Seating: approx. 7,200 (4,316 chairback seats; 180 skybox seats, approx. 2,700 bleacher seats)
- Capacity (largest crowd:14,991 (4/22/89 vs. Florida --- NCAA on-campus record)
- Dimensions: LF: 330, LC: 376, CF: 390, RC: 374, RF: 326
- Batter's eye: 20 feet high, 44 feet wide
- Outfield fence: Six-foot padded chain link fence
- Warning track: 15-foot wide track (crushed brick)
- Foul poles: 45 feet high
- Playing surface: Tiflawn & Tifway II Bermuda Grass
- MSU record at DNF: 1,104-413-2
- MSU games played at DNF: 1,519
- First Game: MSU 5, Illinois Wesleyan 3 (4/3/67)
- NCAA postseason tournaments: 13 (2 NCAA district playoffs, 11 NCAA regional tournaments)
MSU's record at Dudy Noble Year W-L Pct. 1967 9-4 .692 1968 8-10 .444 1969 13-4 .765 1970 18-2 .900 1971 21-4 .840 1972 17-7 .708 1973 13-8 .619 1974 9-5 .643 1975 14-12 .538 1976 23-8 .742 1977 25-2 .926 1978 18-6 .750 1979 33-2 .943 1980 17-10 .630 1981 21-5 .808 1982 17-7 .708 1983 20-6 .769 1984 26-4 .867 1985 25-3 .893 1986 23-11 .676 1987 25-9 .735 1988 31-10 .756 1989 32-5 .865 1990 29-9 .763 1991 23-8 .742 1992 27-10 .730 1993 23-6 .793 1994 18-15 .545 1995 24-11 .686 1996 24-6 .800 1997 28-9 .757 1998 23-8 .742 1999 26-7 .788 2000 27-4 .871 2001 21-13 .618 2002 22-10-1 .682 2003 27-10-1 .724 2004 20-14 .588 TOTAL 820-284-2 .742 Top Crowds AT THE Dude Attendance Opponent Date 1. *14,991 Florida April 22, 1989 2. 14,378 Louisiana State April 16, 1988 3. 13,761 Arkansas April 25, 1992 4. 13,123 Mississippi April 15, 2000 5. 12,708 Auburn April 24, 1993 6. 12,360 Georgia April 6, 2002 7. 11,763 Auburn April 12, 2003 8. 11,496 #Florida State May 27, 1990 9. 11,174 Florida April 13, 1991 10. 11,127 #South Alabama May 26, 2000 11. 10,832 #Notre Dame May 28, 2000 12. 10,688 #Washington May 25, 1997 13. 10,619 Florida April 17, 2004 14. 10,588 #North Carolina May 28, 1989 15. 10,382 Florida April 25, 1987 16. 10,284 #Middle Tennessee May 30, 2003 17. 10,050 Alabama April 10, 1999 18. 9,784 #Notre Dame May 27, 2000 19. 9,593 Vanderbilt April 21, 1990 20. 9,264 Louisiana State March 24, 2001 21. 9,243 Louisiana State May 15, 1993 22. 9,184 #Michigan May 26, 1985 23. 9,088 #Oklahoma May 23, 1992 *- NCAA on-campus attendance record #- NCAA Regional Tournament game Attendance at Dudy Noble Field YEAR Dates Att. Avg. 1976 21 48,205 2,295 1977 18 36,412 2,023 1978 19 47,038 2,476 1979 31 78,135 2,520 1980 22 29,039 1,320 1981 22 74,332 3,379 1982 20 44,147 2,207 1983 22 54,017 2,455 1984 25 78,841 3,154 1985 24 95,604 *3,894 1986 29 55,149 1,902 1987 29 102,542 *3,536 1988 37 134,448 *3,634 1989 32 143,241 *4,476 1990 31 119,312 3,849 1991 25 67,947 2,718 1992 33 109,067 3,305 1993 25 123,061 *4,922 1994 33 128,986 4,161 1995 33 132,105 4,003 1996 30 118,250 3,942 1997 33 161,034 4,880 1998 30 116,963 3,899 1999 33 151,941 4,604 2000 29 174,592 6,020 2001 31 150,435 4,853 2002 31 201,523 6,501 2003 36 233,015 6,472 2004 33 211,137 6,398 *Led nation in average home attendance NOTE: Season-ticket format used since 1993
