Story by
Construction continues at Doak Campbell Stadium as Florida State football home opener nears
- Story by
- Construction continues at Doak Campbell Stadium as Florida State football home opener nears
The focus has been on Florida State football's overseas opener in Dublin a week from Saturday against Georgia Tech .
However, the Seminoles' home opener against Boston College on Labor Day is not far off either.
Advertisement
And Seminole Boosters, Inc., the FSU ticket office and construction crews are working to welcome back fans to Doak Campbell Stadium .
The iconic venue is undergoing massive renovations that remain on schedule, will impact this season but also reflect a major investment in the program.
"Now that we have seen some progress, you really get excited with what the end results are going to be," longtime season ticket holder Mike Harrison said.
More: How will FSU stadium experience change in 2024 amid renovations? Expect 24,000 fewer seats
Approximately 27,000 season-ticket holders were delivered their tickets and parking passes (8,000 distributed) for the seven-game home schedule via email Tuesday by FSU.
Advertisement
Home opponents feature Boston College (Sept. 2, 7:30 p.m., ESPN), Memphis (Sept. 14, noon, ESPN), California (Sept.. 21), Clemson (Oct. 5), North Carolina (Nov. 2), Charleston Southern (Nov. 23) and Florida (Nov. 30).
Four (Florida, Clemson, North Carolina, Cal) of the games are sold out. Capacity is likely to be around 55,000, down from the sell-out capacity of 79,560 in 2023.
The Seminoles, ranked No. 10 in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll and the preseason AP Top 25 rankings, open their season against the Yellow Jackets in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic in Dublin, Ireland, Saturday Aug. 24.
Kickoff is noon (EST) on ESPN.
Advertisement
Seminole Boosters continue to communicate with season ticket holders, donors
A night view of Doak Campbell Stadium's west stands on Aug. 14, 2024
On Wednesday, Seminole Boosters – the fundraising arm of FSU athletics – also emailed membership an update on season-ticket renewals for 2025.
FSU's $265 million commitment to modernize Doak Campbell Stadium, of course, included an increase in season tickets and a one-time capital gift contribution.
Not all season ticket holders will see an increase, however. According to FSU, most bleacher seats will be priced the same, or have a modest increase.
While not everyone is happy with the season-ticket renewal plan, the Boosters announced sold-out areas for 2025 include the Founders Suites, Founders Loge Boxes (mini-suites), the West Sideline Club and the Dunlap Champions Club Loge Boxes.
Advertisement
Seminole Boosters sale representatives also continue to schedule and hold appointments with season ticket holders by their priority (level of contribution).
The fund-raising organization's commitment is to meet with every donor (around 8,000) among its season ticket holders.
Harrison, for example, had initially declined to renew his season tickets, citing the pricing increase and mixed information regarding the stadium's renovation.
However, Harrison, whose family has had season tickets across generations, renewed and upped his annual contribution.
"We wanted no part of it until we went there and sat down with them (Boosters) and could really see what the final project was going to be," Harrison said.
Advertisement
"We got a much better feeling of the direction of the program."
FSU football undergoing three construction projects simultaneously
Mark Cameron, vice president of stadium development and sales strategy for Seminole Boosters, Inc., has spearheaded the organization's outreach.
Wanting to make sure FSU season ticket holders and fans are receiving accurate information regarding their ticket renewals, pricing and options, Cameron has been pleased with the response.
He said around 85 percent of donors renewed for 2024. The organization has met with more than 3,100 donors face-to-face or virtually since last year in regards to finding their fit for 2025.
Advertisement
"I think the face-to-face meetings more than anything have showed the importance of our donors to us because we want to thank them for everything they've done, show them the new options and make sure we have them as a part of this process," Cameron said.
"We felt like it was the only way to do it."
FSU has three construction projects underway simultaneously at and near Doak Campbell Stadium:
The west stands renovation, where 7,000 temporary seats are being placed; the Dunlap Football Center beyond the stadium; and environmental health/safety building code work in the east stands, funded in part by a controversial vote by elected officials to steer $27 million in sales taxes to the project.
Advertisement
When completed, FSU expects the game experience for fans to be improved.
"It's extremely important to make sure that we're continuously trying to improve, whether it's with our student-athletes, and they're seeing what we're doing and how we're progressing and getting better and making sure that we also keep the fan experience at that level," FSU Athletics Director Michael Alford told the Tallahassee Democrat in a previous interview.
"Because I say it all the time: 'We lead the country in that 60 percent of our fan base travels over three and a half hours to get here. And we need to keep that experience going for the impact that we have on game day on Leon and Tallahassee because it's a tremendous economic impact."
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FSU football stadium update: Doak Campbell Stadium work on schedule
