Syracuse athletics and JMA Dome enhance 2025 Orange football fan experience

Athletic director John Wildhack and university VP Pete Sala held a press conference in the Dome Tuesday afternoon. The duo touted multiple enhancements to the 'Cuse fan experience over the upcoming six game home football schedule that begins Saturday at 12:00 p.m. (ET) against Connecticut.

September 2, 2025; Syracuse, New York, USA; Syracuse University VP, Chief Facilities Officer Pete Sala address the media at the JMA Wireless Dome regarding fan enhancements for the upcoming Orange home football season. Mandatory Credit: Sean Murphy, The Juice Online-ON SI | Sean Murphy, The Juice Online-ON SI

A full season of football at Miron Victory Court, better indoor 5G reception, and a digital parking experience

The M.V.C. group gathering spot, or fan experience zone as it is formally labeled, is essential in today's sports venues. Located on the building's east side-300 level, it was only used twice last year for football over the last two November games, and then the full basketball season. It's become pretty popular, pretty quickly, for a place to move about outside the tight confines of the building's corridors, and has out-of-town games beaming all over the place along with plenty of food and drink choices.

Wildhack also outlined the expanded 5G digital experience in the building where fans can now access the university's app to further enhance the game they are watching with real-time stats and other game data instantaneously with a click of the app. 

Since the Dome opened in 1980 on campus on the site of Archbold Stadium, parking has always been an issue. There is simply not enough of it in close proximity to the building to accommodate everybody, and now with the Route 81 project underway just below the Dome's location, there could be confusion among drivers, especially those visiting.

The new app has information on where to park, and actually handles parking sales with barcode passes for all lots (the longtime West area lots used by many suite holders will still have a paper pass option). Sala advised for fans driving to the game to download the traffic app Waze, and keep a look out for all the electronic signage guidance the university is installing along major routes in all directions, and to be patient with many still learning new routes with construction abundant around the university campus.

Longtime recognition coming Saturday for the Sala Family

Holding the title of VP, Chief Facilities Officer at the university, but having started helping to construct stages for concerts at the Dome in 1982, Sala, along with his father John will be honored Saturday morning before the UConn game.

The Sala Family Court, located outside the Dome's northeast corner at Gate N, and across from the Miron Victory Court one of Pete's pet projects, will be formally dedicated. John Sala served the university as the head of the Physical Plant over a long distinguished career, in addition to Pete's work moving up the ranks to oversee Dome operations, first with Tom Benzel Sr. and later Pat Campbell, simultaneously with former AD Jake Crouthamel.

Pete Sala and Crouthamel spent so much time together during the salad days of the Big East in the 1980s-90s turning the Dome into a national college sports household name, that Pete named his son (and only child) "Jake."

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