One section of Williams-Brice could be demolished, rebuilt in stadium renovation
.JPG "The Eddie Floyd football building at the Williams-Brice Stadium.")
The Williams-Brice Stadium renovation is staying on track.
South Carolina moved through a very important checkpoint on Tuesday, getting the project’s $350 million budget approved by the state’s joint bond review committee — a group of House and Senate budget writers.
That leaves USC athletics needing approval from just the state fiscal accountability authority, which meets next week. A rubber stamp there should give the Gamecocks the green light to get shovels in the ground immediately following the 2025 season.
Tuesday’s presentation, though, included new details about the project.
Student section
We’ve written that South Carolina will create an air-conditioned club-like space for Gamecocks students behind the student section, which is still the plan. But where would it go? The joint bond review documents explain that South Carolina is still deciding whether to renovate the Floyd Building or tear it down and build something new.
The Floyd Building is the structure just behind the student section, which was built in 1994 and was used as offices for the football coaches until the Gamecocks built a new football complex. Importantly, the Floyd building is not connected to the scoreboard, which would make a demolition far easier.
Also as part of updating the student section, the documents state the north end zone grandstands will be replaced. It is unclear what that would look like.
New timeline
In the full project estimate South Carolina sent to the joint bond review committee, it says the project will get underway in December 2025 with completion coming in August 2028.
That is a change. Previously, South Carolina has stated Phase I construction will be completed in August 2027. This is likely just the result of the Gamecocks broadening the project, starting it as a necessary step to add suites and turning it into something that will have an effect on every fan that enters Williams-Brice Stadium.
Also, importantly, USC is trying to minimize the renovation’s impact on fans during football season.
From the review document: “Construction is expected to be completed over three annual phases with the work taking place immediately after the last home game and before the first home game of the 2025, 2026, and 2027 football seasons.”
Funding with ticket sales
In South Carolina’s explanation for how it plans to pay for the renovations, it included two revenue streams.
First, it said that the $52-per-semester special student fee goes toward paying debt on “athletic facilities revenue bonds” and will help pay for the Williams-Brice bonds. This is not to be confused with new annual $300 “athletics auxiliary fee” that USC introduced for this school year, a new charge that USC has said won’t go toward the renovations.
South Carolina also said it would generate revenue from an “admissions fee,” which is a “seat assessment of “$15 on each football ticket sold,” $4 for each men’s basketball ticket sold and $1 for any women’s basketball stub.
This is not some sort of new fee. It simply means that South Carolina will take $15 from each football ticket sold and use it toward paying off the Williams-Brice bond.
“That’s already been in place for a number of years,” Lance Grantham, USC’s Associate AD for Ticketing/Parking, told The State on Tuesday. “We’ve actually been previously planning on using that money to pay down other debt on other infrastructure projects like the football facility.”
New field-level club area
The major driver of the renovation is upping South Carolina’s SEC-low 18 suites to 43 (33 traditional suites and 10 founders suites), but it was also add or renovate nine different club areas.
Some have been known about. South Carolina has said it will get rid of the curving walking ramps on the south side of the stadium to add club areas (it will also add escalators for fans to get to the upper concourse).
But the joint bond review document also notes that there will be a “field-level club” to the west side of the stadium. It is not clear what that will look like or where exactly it will be located.
This story was originally published August 19, 2025 at 4:47 PM.
