Construction hasn't started on USF's on-campus stadium, but delays aren't unusual

USF starts spring football practice on March 25 with high hopes of competing for the American Athletic Conference title.

After consecutive 7-6 seasons marked by bowl game victories, head coach Alex Golesh has, on paper, his deepest team yet. But as that building process continues, another important one has stalled for the time being.

Senior writer Matt Baker of The Athletic, a pay site, wrote a lengthy story about USF’s big bet on athletics. Much of it concentrated on the university’s on-campus football stadium, set to open in 2027.

But, as Baker noted, five months after the ballyhooed stadium groundbreaking last fall, the ground hasn’t been broken.

Construction can’t begin until the complex financing plan for the stadium has a guaranteed maximum price. The stadium was originally projected to cost $340 million, but that figure has increased since then because trustees have not approved the final price.

The story reported that Will Weatherford, the head of USF’s trustee board, referred to it as a “$400 million building” in November but also said it will be “well within what we can afford” and is still on track to open in 2027.

I covered multiple stadium and arena projects during my years at The Tampa Tribune and delays like this are not unusual. Just when you think all is well, often there are hiccups because when you’re dealing with that amount of money, every detail matters.

Long-time USF supporters will remember how the opening of the Sun Dome was delayed by a year and still wasn’t fully ready when it finally opened in 1980.

The delay meant that the Bulls basketball team played at six different “home” courts in the area during the 1979 season. The entire upper seating bowl was unfinished when the 1980 season began, and seating  capacity changed night after night.

I know Golesh is anxious about seeing construction cranes and workers at the stadium site, but that can’t happen until every contingency is accounted for. And, as the story noted, President Trump’s tariffs and funding cuts have added a layer of uncertainty.

We know that revenue in the AAC is a pittance compared to the Power 4 conferences.

Michael Kelly, USF’s Vice President for Athletics, believes the major upgrades the university is making in facilities and sports will make the Bulls a top candidate to join one of the power leagues when the next round of realignment occurs.

I believe he is correct.

I  also believe the stadium will be built and that it will be the grand campus centerpiece supporters envisioned when they started talking about this decades ago.

This has to get to the finish line. It’s too important not to.