A new American football and lacrosse stadium has been included in the University of South Florida’s facilities masterplan, with a completion date of 2026 having been set for the project.
Michael Kelly, USF’s vice-president of athletics, last week announced details of the facilities masterplan, which includes additions and enhancements of facilities for all varsity athletic sports programmes.
Earlier this year, USF selected the Sycamore Fields site on the east side of the Tampa campus to build a new stadium for its American football team. The location is currently used for intramural sports and is located within the USF Athletics district.
USF’s American football team, the Bulls, currently plays at Raymond James Stadium, home of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers. A new stadium would cost between $250m (£217m/€251m) and $400m.
USF has now included the stadium in its facilities masterplan, which also features a baseball and softball clubhouse, a tennis facility, a revamped golf practice facility, and a $22m indoor performance facility which is set to open in the coming months.
The capacity of the stadium has not been confirmed. USF is currently in the process of selecting companies to design and build the venue.
Kelly said: “We are committed to competing at the highest level of intercollegiate athletics and continuing to provide a unique and special experience for USF student-athletes and fans that rivals that of any in the nation.
“A big piece to that experience as well as remaining highly competitive and attracting the best and brightest student-athletes is providing top-of-the-line facilities for both daily training and competition.
“My staff and I have worked hard to develop a comprehensive facilities masterplan and an overall athletics strategic plan that is in alignment with the university’s recently released strategic plan. These plans will focus our resources and energies in our daily operations and elevate our athletics campus by strategically enhancing existing facilities and adding new ones across all our programs in the coming years.”
Image: University of South Florida
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