Three hours on the wrong side of Kroger Field in September is a bake. The field runs diagonally, about 121 degrees off north, the shade collects on the southwest sideline, and below is how much of a noon, 3:30 or night Kentucky kickoff every area spends in shade, ray-traced for this exact bowl.
Pick your game and kickoff. Watch the shade move across the bowl through the game.
The field runs diagonally, about 121 degrees off north, so the afternoon sun crosses the bowl broadside. The stands on the southwest side block it first: that sideline averages about 40% of a 3:30 game in shade against 5% for the northeast side. Every number here is ray-traced for this exact orientation (121 degrees), latitude and kickoff time, by the same engine as the live map.
Share of a full game spent in shade, by area, for a mid-September Saturday:
| Seats | Noon | 3:30 | 7:00 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest sideline, lower rows | 0% | 42% | 100% |
| Southwest sideline, upper deck | 0% | 37% | 100% |
| Northeast sideline, lower rows | 0% | 12% | 95% |
| Northeast sideline, upper deck | 0% | 0% | 81% |
| Southeast end zone, lower rows | 0% | 18% | 99% |
| Southeast end zone, upper deck | 0% | 5% | 90% |
| Northwest end zone, lower rows | 0% | 35% | 100% |
| Northwest end zone, upper deck | 0% | 34% | 100% |
100% = shaded for the entire game. Evening kickoffs converge toward 100% everywhere as the sun sets.
| Seats | Game in shade | Reaches half shade |
|---|---|---|
| Southwest sideline, lower rows | 42% | about 2.5 hours in |
| Southwest sideline, mid level | 42% | about 2.5 hours in |
| Southwest sideline, upper deck | 37% | about 2.5 hours in |
| Northwest end zone, lower rows | 35% | about 2.5 hours in |
Northeast sideline, upper deck sit in sun for 100% of a 3:30 game, and Northeast sideline, mid level sit in sun for 97% of a 3:30 game. Noon kickoffs start with the sun about 50 degrees high and nearly every open seat lit. You cannot buy full shade at noon here, only a head start: southwest sideline, lower rows gain it soonest.
At a 3:30 kickoff the sun stands about 47 degrees up in the southwest. Here is the sequence, computed for this bowl: shade climbs the southwest sideline from the bottom up. The lower rows reach half shade about 2.5 hours in, the upper deck about 2.5 hours in. Most fans guess the upper deck shades first. Here it is backwards: the rake of the stands roughly matches the afternoon sun angle, so shadow pools at the front rows first and then climbs the bowl one row at a time. The northeast sideline, upper deck never reach half shade before the final whistle.
By a 7:00 kickoff the sun sits only about 9 degrees above the horizon and is gone during the first half, which is why the night column above reads close to 100% almost everywhere. If shade decides it for your group, a night game beats any seat strategy.
The calendar does half the work. For the identical 3:30 kickoff, the southwest sideline averages about 40% shade in mid-September and about 92% by late October, because the sun stands 15 degrees lower at kickoff (32 instead of 47). Late-season day games are kinder in every section.
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Every number here is produced by a 3D ray-traced model of this seating bowl plus the exact solar position for the dates and kickoffs shown, the same engine behind the live map. The model approximates the bowl as a continuous tiered ring, without overhangs, press boxes or section canopies, so read the percentages as a dependable ranking of which areas shade first, not a row-level guarantee. Independent tool; not affiliated with the NCAA or any school.
Same conference, same afternoon sun. Shade guides for the rest of the SEC: