Story by
Why Clemson football's field could have different look before Tigers face LSU
- Story by
- Why Clemson football's field could have different look before Tigers face LSU
CLEMSON — Clemson football 's Memorial Stadium could have a different look this fall.
Clemson athletic director Graham Neff said he, his staff and Clemson Ventures are "having some conversations" around potential partnerships for Memorial Stadium as early as this fall, opening the door for field sponsorships to come to Frank Howard Field.
Advertisement
"There are non-negotiables for how we go about it, but thoughtful and strategic partnerships and sponsorships is certainly part of it and part of the auspices of Clemson Ventures," Neff said Aug. 5.
This comes after Clemson athletics announced July 15 the addition of Novant Health as a partner of Clemson Ventures . The partnership will allow Novant Health to become the first on-uniform, primary brand partner of Clemson's mascots — The Tiger and Tiger Cub.
The NCAA does not allow jersey sponsorships, but the organization permitted commercial sponsor advertisements on football fields for regular-season games last season, allowing corporate ads to be placed in three spots.
Schools like Tennessee and Oklahoma State added sponsors to boost revenue. Neff has said he wants to "keep Clemson Clemson," so adding a potential field sponsor would bring in dollars and not be an aggressive change like, for example, changing Memorial Stadium's name.
Advertisement
Clemson already has a sponsor on Littlejohn Coliseum's court. Founders Federal Credit Union, Clemson's official credit union partner, has branding located in two places near midcourt.
"These aren't foreign to sports or even Clemson but in a very measured, strategic way is how we're looking to go about it," Neff said.
MORE: AD Graham Neff comments on report of Clemson potentially leaving ACC with UNC for SEC
Revenue generation is critical after the NCAA settlement to address increased costs in 2025-26. The cap for this season is approximately $20.5 million, and Clemson plans to use the full amount and to fully fund 150 new scholarships across all sports, increasing totals from 275 to 425. That will be an approximate additional cost of $6 million for Clemson.
Advertisement
Neff said previously Clemson has no plans of cutting sports, so generating more dollars while minimizing other expenses will be an emphasis in 2025-26. In fiscal year 2024, Clemson athleticst lost several hundred thousand dollars .
Clemson began revenue-generating initiatives ahead of the settlement being approved, including adding a student athletics fee , increasing season-ticket prices for football games , approving the sale of alcohol at sporting events and hosting non-NCAA sports on campus like the Savannah Bananas baseball game in April. It also created Clemson Ventures, a revenue-generating entity that will produce in-house sales and sponsorship and facilitate NIL deals with businesses for Clemson athletes.
Graham Neff on Amy Smith's firing after FOIA revealed contract violations
Clemson fired former gymnastics coach Amy Smith with cause on April 21. Documents obtained by The Greenville News via an open-records request showed she violated three clauses in her contract , including "Failure to engage in 'safe and responsible treatment' of student athletes on the team; or any other act or omission, including but not limited to physical and/or emotional abuse of student athletes, that creates, or could reasonably be expected to create, an 'unreasonable risk of harm' to a student athlete."
Advertisement
"The student-athlete experience in all of our sports is non-negotiable," Neff said. "Certainly followed protocol and worked with the transition with Amy."
Neff also called her dismissal "unfortunate." Clemson hired former Cal coaches Elisabeth Crandall-Howell and Justin Howell on May 12 to replace Smith.
Graham Neff on Erik Bakich's long-term plans for Clemson baseball
Clemson baseball is coming off its third consecutive year hosting an NCAA regional. The Tigers fell short of their goal of making the College World Series in 2025, but coach Erik Bakich has revamped their roster for the 2026 season .
Advertisement
He also hopes to have Clemson's Doug Kingsmore Stadium become a year-round attraction similar to Truist Park , where the MLB's Atlanta Braves play, and the adjacent Battery Atlanta, a sport, entertainment and retail plaza. He recognizes his program will need to have great success for this to happen but has pointed out the outfield area outside the ballpark is primed for additions that can make Clemson baseball games better.
Neff said these plans are intriguing, but he and his staff haven't explored this "bigger picture" topic yet.
"That's probably one we haven't really started to dive into yet," Neff said, "but I think that's something that's down the road could be really intriguing and how that fits within our community and for our campuses."
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at dcarter@gannett.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson football: Tigers could add field sponsor in 2025
