Photo courtesy of USF
By Dominic Feo
History was made on Nov. 8 when the University of South Florida broke ground on its first ever on-campus stadium.
The stadium is expected to be available in time for the Bulls’ 2027 season.
The $340 million project will seat approximately 35,000 people, 8,000 of which will be for the student section on the west end of the stadium.
The ceremony began with a speech by university President Rhea Law where she spoke about the stadiums uses aside from football.
“Certainly, it will be USF football, but it’s going to be women’s lacrosse, it’s going to be concerts, it’s going to be festivals, it’s going to be other events,” Law said.
USF kept its fans in mind by adding a vast field on the northern lawn of the stadium that is ideal for tailgating.
Having its own stadium will be a welcome change for the university. The team played its inaugural season in 1997 alongside the Tampa Buccaneers at Tampa Stadium which was demolished one year later to become Raymond James Stadium.
“Three years ago, I said that Bulls Nation deserved to have a stadium, and our time has come to take this bold step forward,” said USF Board of Trustees chair Will Weatherford.
During USF’s tenure at Raymond James, the team has had less of a home-field advantage than other Florida teams that have their own stadiums. A stadium on campus will make it easier for fans to attend and help foster a greater sense of school spirit.
The stadium will be built at Sycamore Field, a place with historical significance as it was where USF’s football team held its first ever practice in 1996.
Head coach Alex Golesh spoke at the ceremony about how his team’s new home will benefit them.
“The support that we’ve gotten and are continuing to get will allow us to recruit, will allow us to retain, and will allow us to develop elite football players and elite young men,” Golesh said.
The stadium symbolizes a new era for USF, as the program looks to further establish itself as a legitimate contender in the American Conference (AAC).
The 2024 AAC Championship will be played on Dec. 6 by Tulane University and Army University, two teams that already have on-campus stadiums. USF Athletic Director Michael Kelly is confident that the new stadium will be home for USF’s own future greatness.
“Championships will be won here,” said Kelly.
