It was announced that Clemson would be getting a softball team back in 2017. How will the new stadium affect Clemson football game days in Tiger Town?
Huge news came out of Clemson Athletic Department a little more than a year ago and this time, it didn’t have to do with Clemson football.
Officials announced that the University would be adding a softball team.
The sport was announced as a substitute for women’s athletics as the diving program competed its final season.
Clemson officials said that they were expecting the team’s first season to come in 2020, which is still two years away. Before the team can begin play, they will need to build a stadium.
So, it brings up an interesting question: How will Clemson football game days be affected by the new softball stadium?
Tailgating Atmosphere…
The construction of the new softball stadium is expected to begin in December of this year.
The Post and Courier’s Grace Raynor spoke to Clemson University Athletic Director Dan Radakovich about the issue and here’s what he had to say, according to the Post and Courier:
"“For football gameday Saturdays, it will be the same,” Radakovich said. “It will be a couple hundred spots lighter because of the footprint of the stadium, but especially with motor homes that are so important to the atmosphere of our whole stadium and surrounding, we want that to continue to be as positive an experience for those folks as we can. No major changes there.”"
I think it’s really good news that tailgating atmosphere won’t be affected, at least too much, but the construction.
Obviously, you’re going to lose a couple hundred parking spots, but nothing too major. Of course, those couple of hundred parking spots do many a lot to the Clemson football faithful.
It’s already really tough to find a parking spot in Clemson on Game Day and this may make it just a little bit more difficult. Overall, though, the benefits outweigh the cost and it’s a good decision for the athletic department.
Next: Could Chase Brice lead Clemson to the CFB Playoff?
Radakovich is very smart and he knows what he is doing.
In the end, I don’t foresee parking getting much worse because of the new stadium or the atmosphere of tailgating on Saturdays changing as a result.