Houston Roughnecks games will also provide job opportunities for students that are interested in part-time work on campus.| Photo courtesy of the Houston Roughnecks
TDECU stadium will host the XFL’s Houston Roughnecks practices, home games and possible playoff games after signing a five-year contract.
XFL season starts Feb. 8 and goes until April. The Houston Roughnecks games will be shown on ESPN and FOX, which deputy athletic director David Tagliarino said will bring widespread attention to the University.
“The partnership with the XFL will deliver a lot of positive benefits to UH, including the opportunity to bring a lot of new visitors to campus and showcase our great University to people that may not otherwise come to campus,” Tagliarino said.
With this national recognition, some students say they’re excited to see the University get a new level of exposure.
“I feel that this will put our name on the map because people will see that they are practicing at our school and more will know who we are,” said nursing freshman Payton Ray.
The Houston Roughnecks will offer ticket discounts to the stadium’s faculty and staff members, Tagliarino said, but he is unsure about student discounts at this time. The games will also provide job opportunities for students that are interested in part-time work on campus.
“This will provide our students the opportunity to enjoy some great entertainment on campus,” Tagliarino said. “Furthermore, with the plans and initiatives by the Houston Roughnecks organization developing special offers for students, faculty and staff to come out and enjoy their games.”
Some students said being able to easily attend Houston Roughnecks games is an opportunity they’re looking forward to.
“I think it would be worth a shot to go to a game because it would be a new experience not many in the city have seen yet,” said journalism sophomore Ryan Hampton.
With XFL season nearing, Parking and Transportation Services along with Houston Athletics have developed a parking plan for the games that take place during the day. The games will primarily utilize Lot 12A/B, Lot 9B/C and the Stadium garage.
Since it’s the XFL’s inaugural season, all eight of the XFL teams were hosted in the Houston-area for a league-wide training camp at various colleges and high schools from Jan. 5-21.
Political science junior Marco Venegas said he thinks that the XFL coverage will cause more students to attend UH, and he’s interested to see the effects of the national coverage.
“I would like to see how this first season goes hosting the XFL and how it will affect UH by bringing more students in,” said Venegas.
