The Florida State football program announced on Monday that the Seminoles would play their 2016 spring game at the Citrus Bowl.
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The Florida State Seminoles will be playing their 2016 spring game outside the friendly confines of Doak Campbell Stadium. Monday, it was declared where the program will be playing their annual springtime contest.
BREAKING NEWS: @FSU_Football will play the 2016 spring game in the @CitrusBowl http://t.co/Jvu93SaQKj pic.twitter.com/wpU40NJKOb
— FSU Seminoles (@Seminoles) July 6, 2015
Last month, it was announced that Florida State would have to take their spring game elsewhere due to stadium renovations.
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The game will take place at 5 p.m. on April 9 at the Citrus Bowl, which will also be the site for the program’s 2016 season-opening game against Ole Miss, a contest that will be dubbed the “Orlando Kickoff Game” per a report from Jerry Hinnen of CBSSports.com.
Florida State athletic director Stan Wilcox discussed more about the change in a press release Monday.
“The short term construction challenges of building the Champions Club in Doak Campbell stadium have provided a unique opportunity for our 2016 spring football game,” said Wilcox. “We are pleased to offer our fans greater access to Florida State football at an exciting and refurbished venue in one of the best destinations cities in the world. Moving the game to Orlando and partnering with Steve Hogan and his staff at Florida Citrus Sports will allow us to platform the game and Florida State athletics in exciting and unique new ways.”
Seminoles head coach Jimbo Fisher also seemed excited about the move, issuing a statement in the press release Monday.
"“We are excited to play our 2016 spring game at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, said FSU head football coach Jimbo Fisher. “With the renovations to our stadium next spring that have been provided from contributions from our fans and boosters, it gave us a unique opportunity to hold our spring weekend at another venue. The Orlando area is a tremendous part of our Seminole fan base and it will be a great opportunity for the greatest fans in college football from across the state to see our team. Couple that with the fact that we are opening the 2016 season against Ole Miss in the Citrus Bowl and it made sense.”"
Moving the game to Orlando was a great decision. Attendance at the game has a chance to soar as now fans from all over Florida can access the game easier, particularly fans who would have difficulty making the trip to Tallahassee otherwise. Orlando is also known as a very family-friendly location so potentially, more families have the opportunity to come see this game as well.
Speaking from a football perspective, having the spring game on the same field that you will be playing your opener on is also a bonus. It will give the players an idea of what it will be like to play in a different stadium, give them time to adjust to all the nuances of the field, and in a smaller sense, get them ready for the opener.
It may be unconventional, but for Florida State, hosting their ‘16 spring game in Orlando may be a blessing in disguise.
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