USC named its baseball field Founders Park in honor of former baseball coach Ray Tanner

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) – The baseball field at Founders Park will get a new name when the 2025 season begins, according to the University of South Carolina (USC).

The university announced Friday that it will give the Gamecock baseball field at Founders Park a new name: “Ray Tanner Field.”

The decision was made possible after Gamecock Athletics, a group of donors, contributed a total of $2.5 million towards the naming of the stadium. It is the first USC athletics surface to be named after a former coach or student-athlete.

Tanner, who served as head baseball coach from 1996 to 2012, coached the Gamecocks baseball team for 16 seasons. The team appeared in the College World Series six times under Tanner’s leadership, winning the NCAA Championship in 2010 and 2011 and finishing second nationally in 2002 and 2012.

Under Tanner, the USC baseball program set records for both consecutive NCAA Tournament wins and CWS wins, recording 22 and 12 wins, respectively, from 2010–2012.

“The achievements I have been a part of at the University of South Carolina are due to the great support of our university administration, Gamecock student-athletes, coaches, staff and fans,” Tanner said. “This is a huge gesture from my friends and donors. I am grateful for their involvement in this project. Our baseball program is one of the best in the country and we will continue to compete for championships as we begin the Paul Mainieri era at USC.”

In 2012, Tanner became the university’s director of athletics. Under his leadership, the athletics department won four national championships: the women’s equestrian team in 2015 and the women’s basketball team in 2017, 2022 and 2024.

In September, USC announced that Tanner would step down as director of athletics and become director emeritus of athletics and senior advisor to President Michael Amiridis.

The Tanner Field Dedication Ceremony will be held February 14-16, 2025, during the opening weekend of the 2025 baseball season.

“Founders Federal Credit Union is thrilled to announce that Coach Ray Tanner will be honored at Ray Tanner Field at Founders Park,” said Bruce Brumfield, president and CEO of Founders Federal Credit Union. “It is a privilege for Founders Park to be associated in any way with Coach Tanner and his legacy. Coach Tanner has served the University of South Carolina with integrity and dedication, and there is no one more deserving of this honor.”

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