Major renovations to Sams Memorial Stadium complete, reopens Oct. 2

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Brownsville Independent School District athletic officials announced that Sams Memorial Stadium is officially reopening its doors to the public on Thursday.

The stadium underwent major renovations throughout the summer and at the start of the high school football season.

Officials are referring to the project as a $3.1 million state-of-the-art soccer and football complex.

The project has been nearly four months in the making, with renovations beginning back in June following graduations.

BISD Athletic Director Gilbert Leal said one of the biggest changes to Brownsville’s most iconic stadium was the removal of the track to expand the field for soccer.

“We had a window to be able to remove the track here for the first time in 80 years and turn it into a football-soccer complex, and we’ve done that. We’re actually installing the nets right now. We have a wall that sits about 15 feet behind the end zones to catch the rolling balls, so it’s going to have a kind of World Cup feel to it, both for soccer and football. It should be very unique," said Leal.

Other major upgrades include new concession stands, restrooms, locker rooms, additional parking, and separate entrances for home and visiting teams.

The stadium will be adding "Coach Joe A. Rodriguez Field" to its name, honoring the late BISD coach.

Leal shared his excitement not only for what this facility means to student-athletes but to the entire community.

“It’s a representation of all our six schools being one family. We have a great community and a great system here in Brownsville ISD, so I’m excited to be able to share it with everybody,” he said.

Leal also mentioned they will be ready to host UTRGV football next spring and that their first home game will be held at the stadium.

He expressed gratitude for the collaborative efforts from the city of Brownsville and BISD that made this project possible.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, with the first game back at the stadium scheduled for Thursday evening.