Williams-Brice Stadium has transformed into a full-scale construction zone, raising questions about whether South Carolina football will be able to host its traditional spring game in 2026.
With demolition underway and major infrastructure work ongoing, access to the stadium currently requires safety check-ins and hard hats. Entire concourse sections have been removed, underground construction is active, and heavy equipment is preparing to install 50-foot foundation piles. The southeast end zone ramp and the Floyd Building beneath the scoreboard have already been demolished as crews push forward on an accelerated renovation schedule.
To complete the first phase of the project, Contract Construction CEO Greg Hughes told The State that a 200-person crew will work from dawn until dusk, six days a week, over an eight-month period. The focus is on ensuring the stadium is fully operational for South Carolina’s home opener against Kent State on Sept. 5, not for a spring game in April.
“The construction is so compressed and it is so complicated,” South Carolina Athletic Director Jeremiah Donati told The State on Monday, “that we need to make sure we don’t disrupt what is already a very difficult task to complete all of these fan amenities before next season.
“Unfortunately, we may not be able to do that game,” Donati continued. “So I don’t know yet. We haven’t made any decisions, but it’s something we need to come to a conclusion on here in the next two to three weeks.”
While the renovations are expected to reshape the fan experience — including wider concourses, additional restrooms and concession areas, and a relocated visiting locker room — those improvements are tightly scheduled. Construction on the west side of the stadium is not expected to wrap up until May, with work on the east side extending into June. Even after those milestones, crews will continue building a multi-level tower in the southeast end zone and a large student club space behind the north end zone.
The uncertainty has prompted discussions about alternatives, including relocating the spring game or limiting seating. However, those options present logistical and safety challenges.
“We’d like to play the game,” Donati said, “but the project is the priority and we can’t do anything to jeopardize that. We’re evaluating all of our options and seeing if it’s feasible to do this year.”
Recent history suggests cancellation would not be unusual. Missouri canceled its 2025 and 2026 spring games due to stadium renovations, while Florida State also skipped its spring game last year for similar reasons.
South Carolina’s spring game has traditionally drawn strong attendance. The 2025 game attracted more than 36,000 fans, while over 51,000 attended in 2023 following an eight-win season. Given those numbers, moving the event to a smaller venue — such as Benedict College or South Carolina State — would significantly reduce capacity and undercut the community-focused atmosphere the program has built around the game.
Halting construction temporarily is also not a simple solution.
“When you halt a construction project,” Donati said, “it’s not as easy as saying, ‘Hey everybody, stop what you’re doing. Take a few hours off while we play this game,’ because there’s all these codes and safety protocols. It actually takes quite a while to shut down a construction project.”
As planning continues, university officials are relying on their construction partners to determine whether accommodating a spring game is feasible without risking delays to the broader renovation schedule.
“It’s a tremendous amount of work to do it and I don’t know at this point that we can pull all that off and (the project) still stay on time,” Donati said. “We’re relying pretty heavily on our construction partners to put together a timeline to see if it’s even reasonable to ask them to do this.”
For now, the fate of South Carolina’s 2026 spring football game remains undecided, with a final determination expected in the coming weeks as construction timelines become clearer.
Originally reported by Jordan Kaye in The State.
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