FAU Football Stadium Receives $2 Million Donation from Schmidt Family Foundation

Florida Atlantic University’s athletic department received a $2 million donation toward the new on-campus football stadium from the Schmidt Family Foundation on May 4.

The 30,000-seat stadium is the centerpiece for FAU’s Innovation Village, a $70 million project which will also include two housing dorms and shops, which has already helped garner interest from prospective students and the community.

The stadium is scheduled to be completed by Oct. 7, with the first home game slated for Oct. 15 against Western Kentucky.

The donation secures the foundation a permanent place on the scoreboard upon its completion.

“We are extremely grateful to the Schmidt Family Foundation for this gift,” said FAU President Mary Jane Saunders. “The support FAU has received from the Schmidts over the years has helped it become the internationally recognized university it is today.

With these funds for the stadium, the Schmidt family continues to leave its mark on FAU, and we will be reminded of the extraordinary generosity every time we look at the scoreboard that bears their family name.”

This donation is the largest to date for the stadium.

“Through the Schmidts' generosity, this gift becomes the largest donation to the stadium thus far and really gives the project vital credibility in the community,” said FAU Director of Athletics Craig Angelos. “We cannot thank them enough.”

FAU will open the new stadium on Oct. 15 against Western Kentucky.

“October 15 will forever be a day of great significance in FAU history, as we play for the first time in our on-campus stadium,” said head football coach Howard Schnellenberger.

“On behalf of the players, coaches and fans, I thank the Schmidt Family Foundation for their commitment to the future of Owl football and for their generous gift to our new home.”

For more information about the the new stadium, visit www.fausports.com.