Over the last ten years, the Jaguars have shared a football field at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama. That changes in September 2020 when the university will bring football games home to campus at its new Hancock Whitney Stadium.
Upon completion, the 25,000 seat stadium will feature a turf field and drainage system constructed by twenty-seven year veteran sports field construction company, Sports Turf Company of Whitesburg, GA. While the seating, electronics, concessions get the most headlines during construction, the field will be all the focus on game day.
Sports Turf will install AstroTurf's performance turf system, “Rootzone 3D3 Blend Trionic”. Rootzone 3D transformed the turf industry with its thatch layer to prevent rubber infill from moving, significantly reducing “rubber splash”, the main problem with other turf fields. Then AstroTurf transformed the industry again with its patented Trionic fiber, combining player-friendly, non-abrasive polyethylene (PE), with ultra-durable nylon. It is the most durable fiber ever created with wear testing showing a 50% improvement over conventional PE fibers. By bringing these improvements to the project, Sports Turf will enhance safety, playability and durability, to benefit both South Alabama athletes and the University as a whole.
“This new stadium will propel South Alabama football and all Jaguar athletics programs to a new level of excellence, success and prestige,” said Joel Erdmann, Athletic Director of South Alabama. “We have been deliberate and meticulous in planning every aspect of this stadium project, and our students, alumni and fans will be proud to call it home.”
Along with a state-of-the-art field, the university aims for the students to be the main focus of the stadium and the game experience.
“To start off, the stadium is within a one or two-minute walk from 4,500 students,” Erdmann said to AL.com. “We wanted them to literally wake up game-day morning, look out the window and see the stadium and hear the music to start their game-day festivities.”
Hancock Whitney Stadium will be the third field Sports Turf Company will complete for the University in the past four years. This reflects Sports Turf Company’s focus on providing solutions to the meet the specific needs of the university. Sports Turf is proud to have University of South Alabama recognize our commitment to constructing the very best athletic facilities.
