Jacksonville State will officially break ground Monday on its new football headquarters, which is set to open in the fall of 2024.

The groundbreaking for the Loring and Debbie White Football Complex is part of a “Campus Transformation Celebration” that also includes the launch of construction projects for the school’s North Village Residence Hall and Jax State Dining Hall. The celebration takes place at 4 p.m. Monday along Nelson Avenue on the JSU campus between Ayers and Sparkman Halls.

The football complex replaces the existing JSU field house adjacent to Burgess-Snow Field. The new two-level facility will include a game day club and player lounge on the first floor, and a second level with eight suites and two corporate “super suites.”

“It is exciting to see the crews starting work on the new facility that will replace the old fieldhouse at Burgess-Snow Field,” JSU athletics director Greg Seitz said. “This is a project that we’ve been working on for quite some time and to see the demolition begin and know that we are closer to getting our student-athletes in there is a great sight.”

The White Football Complex will also include “state-of-the-art training equipment, technology, hydrotherapy, coach’s offices and additional meeting rooms,” as well as a central player concourse. A football hall of fame is also planned for inclusion in the building, which was designed by the architectural firm of Goodwyn Mills Cawood of Montgomery, with construction by Brasfield & Gorrie of Birmingham and program management by Kemp Management Services of Birmingham.

The construction of the new football complex begins as Jacksonville State makes its historic move to the FBS level as a member of Conference USA. Long a Division II and FCS power, the Gamecocks went 9-2 in 2022 under first-year coach Rich Rodriguez.

“With the move to FBS and to Conference USA this fall, we knew that we had to upgrade our facilities and continue our commitment to our storied football program here at Jax State,” Seitz said. “This facility will be where our student-athletes spend most of their time and will provide them with resources that are on par or better than most programs at our level. It is a step forward for Jax State Football and for Jax State University.”

Jax State opens its 2023 football season at home Aug. 26 against Conference USA rival UTEP.