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According to Chad Bishop and Ken Sugiura at the AJC, Georgia Tech is looking into selling naming rights for Historic Grant Field, with Hyundai as the interested party in acquiring those rights.
They stipulate that it is the field name that is up for sale, not the stadium name. This means Bobby Dodd Stadium will remain as such, but Grant Field will not be the name of the playing surface any longer.
With Tech’s budget ranked amongst the lowest in Power 5 athletic departments, the financial windfall this deal could bring would be felt immediately between helping pay off outstanding debts and potentially raising salaries for coaches.
The historical significance of the Grant Field name, though, should not be understated amidst the news. Though football has been played on the site since 1905, the stadium as we know it today began to take shape from 1913, when grandstands were built; it became the full-time home of Tech football for the 1912 season. John Grant, a member of the Tech Board of Trustees and prominent Atlanta mogul, was the benefactor of the facility. Grant dedicated his gift in honor of his deceased son Hugh Inman Grant, who died at the age of 11 in 1906. Grant Field predates most campus buildings, with just the Hill older than the facility.
Here’s what our writers had to say about the news:
Completely removing “Grant Field” (no relation to me, by the way) would be an insult to the original benefactor of the site, who named it in honor of his deceased son.
— Jake Grant (@jakegrant98) July 7, 2023
Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Grant Field (keeping the acronym the same) would be a nice compromise. https://t.co/KCkS3lMpK9
This is quite something. I have to imagine the current debt issue looming over the GTAA was a serious factor in Tech deciding to consider this. Hoping to see some serious $$$ next to the name if it happens b/c we need it! https://t.co/4w8IMFb0AU
— Jack Purdy (@JackNicolaus) July 7, 2023
Money is money, but this feels so…odd
— Chris Paschal (@creespaschal) July 7, 2023
Feels like we could absolutely keep Grant Field but still have Hyundai in there, surely that wasn’t a deal breaker? https://t.co/pr4fZ36ooC
If the name change happens, South Carolina State would be the first team to visit Georgia Tech on the renamed field on September 9. Tech opens their season in another car branded place, Mercedes Benz Stadium, against Louisville on September 1.
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