The University of North Florida athletic department announced an $8 million gift from the estate of Kernan Hodges last month, marking one of the largest donations in the program’s history.
Athletic Director Nick Morrow said the funding will modernize infrastructure and amenities at Hodges Stadium and that the gift had been in development since Kernan and George Hodges died in 2022.
“When they passed a couple of years ago, they were kind of working through that process of finalizing their estate,” Morrow said. “The way it was written that a certain amount would come to us after they finalized their estate.”
Infrastructure and modernization
The final amount gifted by Hodges’ estate was around $8 million, a gift Morrow called one of the largest in UNF Athletics history.
“We’re excited to invest in that and turn it into something we can be proud of from our university and from the city,” Morrow said.
The university received the gift in stages, including a smaller initial installment a couple of years ago, according to Morrow.
UNF used the early funds to build a video board at Hodges Stadium, renovate the weight rooms, and improve lighting for night games. Additionally, Morrow said the project also received support from the city and the Duval County Tourist Development Council.
Morrow said future renovations will focus on public restrooms, locker rooms, the press box, concession stands, and premium seating and will also address stadium infrastructure issues.
Specifically, structural issues include the chiller and railing, which Morrow said both need to be replaced as they are “highly necessary just to keep the building running.”
UNF Athletics is currently in the design phase of the renovations and plans to start work in the summer. Later in the fall, between the track and soccer seasons, is when athletics plans to “knock out a lot of meaningful projects.”
“This design won’t be too complicated because we’re not actually building on or knocking down walls and reconfiguring things,” Morrow said.
Driving economic and community impact
Without the large donation, Morrow said they would’ve had to dial back the stadium events due to infrastructure constraints.
“Now we continue, we can just move forward and try and get bigger events,” Morrow said. “We’re getting calls all the time about hosting national and international track meets, soccer games, you name it.”
The stadium has generated more than 200,000 hotel room nights through track meets since 2013. The facility is home to the men’s and women’s soccer and track programs and regularly hosts high-profile events, such as the NCAA Track and Field East Region.
Hodges Stadium is slated to host the East Region first round in 2027, the NCAA Division II National Championship in 2028, and the FHSAA Track and Field Championships through that same year.
Beyond the economic impact, Morrow believes the upgrades will increase university exposure.
“Maybe it’s a prospective student who wasn’t considering UNF before, then they come here and see the campus,” he said.
Impact on Student-Athletes
Morrow meets with every team annually to discuss athletic projects and assess student needs. A recurring request has been for improved locker rooms at Hodges Stadium.
“Kind of like the Arena and those teams that live here needed a better locker room, they needed more space, they needed it modernized, and now they have probably the best in the league,” Morrow said. “We want to deliver quality facilities that benefit the current student athlete experience.”
Instead of avoiding those spaces, Morrow wants athletes to be proud of their locker room.
“Now they have a locker room that they can walk here and be proud of as opposed to maybe in the past, where they might avoid going into the locker room,” Morrow said.
Hodges Stadium’s next big event will be the East Coast Relays, starting on May 1 and running through May 2.
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