Update: South Alabama's Board of Trustees has unanimously approved the new stadium. USA AD Joel Erdmann told AL.com major steptoday's news is a "" in the right direction.
South Alabama's Board of Trustees is expected to vote on and authorize school president Dr. Tony Waldrop to execute a contract on building a new, on-campus football stadium.
The Jaguars, who launched in 2009 under head coach Joey Jones and are now led by first-year head coach Steve Campbell, currently play in Ladd-Peebles Stadium, which hits a triple whammy of bad stadiums. It's too old (built in 1948), too big (40,000 seats) and too far (seven miles off campus).
The new, as-yet-unnamed stadium will be on-campus, seat a more intimate and appropriate 25,000 fans and, obviously, be brand-spanking new.
The stadium is expected to cost $72 million, financed through university funs and a public/private partnership. The school is also in discussion to bring the Senior Bowl and the Dollar General Bowl to the new venue, according to WPMI-TV.
The expected completion date is fall 2020, which would require construction to begin next month.