Texas Tech University has renamed its football venue to Galaxy Stadium, sparking widespread backlash from fans and alumni, who are furious the nearly 80-year-old “Jones” name is being dropped. The massive corporate change—which also includes NIL support for student- athletes.
The name change came as part of a 15-year, $75 million corporate sponsorship deal with the digital assets and AI data center company, Galaxy, which includes NIL support for student- athletes.
The university opted for the change after their previous naming rights agreement with AT&T expired.
Meanwhile, fans have taken to social media and message boards to express their frustration disapproval with their primary reasons being the stadium was originally named after Texas Tech’s third president, Clifford B. Jones, and his wife Aubrey upon its opening in 1947 and because Red Raider fans view the venue simply as “The Jones” and feel that replacing the historic name with a corporate sponsor is a gross over-commercialization. Response on Facebook was largely in opposition and outrage at the name change: Colin West - “This is why Tech will never be taken seriously. You don’t sell the name of your stadium and wipe away the historic name for some money. You also don’t let a data center buy it, especially in a time when everyone is against them. Tech is so desperate to be taken seriously in football that they are selling out their history for a little extra cash.” Sp Perez – “Should have been called “The Raiderland Stadium.” · Ernie Ekberg - “Tech sold out history.” Lubbock Texas Tech Fan – “My father graduated from Tech and played in the Tech Band in 1948. I too am an ‘82 graduate. My family has been diehard Tech fans my entire life. The place we’ve called home for football has been JONES Stadium forever and has a deep legacy. I am totally disgusted with Kirby and the rest of the athletic department and university leaders for allowing the name Jones to totally disappear. I totally understand naming rights and the almighty $$$$$, but there are some things that are sacred. Galaxy will certainly provide a huge financial windfall but negotiations should have included that Jones must be part of the naming. What a disgrace!” Charlotte Burt – “Great universities stand on honor and respect their history and their tradition.” Corina Rodriguez Reyna – “It’s all about the Data Center.”
Jay B Orr – “Unfortunately we are living in a time when traditions are being pushed to the background because of the new Golden Rule: He who has the gold makes the rules. Embarrassing!” Becky Massingill - They’re shoving AI down our throats and thumbing their nose at the legacy of Jones, a revered former president of Tech, while also thumbing their nose at their fan base. It would serve them right if ticket sales plummeted.” Despite the multi-million- dollar rebranding, many die-hard fans and community members are declaring they will continue to call the venue by its traditional name. Other fans suggested a compromise name such as Jones Galaxy Stadium, feeling the name change disrespects legacy. Texas Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt noted that the university and Galaxy will plan a permanent physical tribute on the stadium grounds to honor the Jones family’s original legacy. But that may be too little, too late when the new stadium name goes up. Interestingly, the name change to “Galaxy” comes during a time when Lubbock citizens are pushing back and hostile to the possibility of an AI facility being built in Lubbock.