Artist rendering of the new USF stadium.
Credit/USF
Football is big in Florida. A $6 million gift from USF Federal Credit Union will help make football even bigger in the southern part of the state.
The Temple Terrace, Fla.-based USF FCU ($1.1 billion in assets, 73,473 members) announced it has gifted the University of South Florida (USF) millions of dollars to support the construction of the new on-campus stadium as well as naming rights to the walkway leading into the stadium. The new stadium is scheduled to open in the fall of 2027.
In the Dec. 6 announcement from USF FCU, the $6 million will allow the credit union to name the walkway USF Federal Credit Union Champions Way, enabling thousands of fans to see the credit union's brand as they walk into the game. Officials believe the gift "will forever change the Tampa campus and USF community for the better."
"Before every home game, the journey our USF student-athletes and Bulls fans will take through the USF Federal Credit Union Champions Way to enter the stadium will bring their excitement about the University of South Florida to a whole new level," USF President Rhea Law said. "I can think of no more fitting partner's name to adorn this focal point for our Bulls community than our friends at the USF Federal Credit Union. We greatly appreciate Rick Skaggs and his team and thank them for their support of this transformational project."
According to the announcement, approximately 85% of all daily visitors to the stadium (for football games, lacrosse matches, concerts, special events, tours, festivals and admissions programming) will reach the stadium by traversing USF Federal Credit Union Champions Way. In addition, the 30-foot-wide tree-lined path will be the home of alumni, student and fan tailgating before events.
"Since we began in 1959 with just 16 members and $505 in assets, the history of our credit union has indeed been closely tied to the success of the university," USF FCU President/CEO Richard Skaggs said.
He added, "Building this stadium to serve all students, faculty, staff and alumni for many events is truly a historic achievement and we're honored to be part it. On behalf of our board of directors and our members, we congratulate all USF leaders past and present who have worked tirelessly to achieve this goal."
Earlier this year, USF FCU announced more than $1 million in new support to USF through a combination of scholarship endowments and title sponsorships of 10 signature events. According to the credit union, the gift funds scholarships and student/alumni programming within the Alumni Association, USF Health, the Muma College of Business, the Sarasota-Manatee campus, Diversity Initiatives and Veteran Success.
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
