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A New Dawn in Mission Valley e highly anticipated SDSU stadium is ready to show the world what San Diego is made of BY DEANNA MURPHY | PHOTOGRAPHY BY VINCENT KNAKAL e wait is over. On Saturday, September 3, Snapdragon Stadium makes its grand debut with the opening game of the 2022 Aztec football season versus the Arizona Wildcats. It'll be not just the first look for all the fans in attendance, but the stadium's worldwide introduction as the game is broadcast on CBS. ough determining exactly what would replace Mission Valley's 50-year-old San Diego Stadium of many names was a long and sometimes contentious conversation, in reality, Snapdragon's doors will open less than two years after demolition on its predecessor began. e approach of Day One has the team at San Diego State University who've guided it to the finish line understandably eager in anticipation. "I'm very excited for the community of San Diego," says John David Wicker, SDSU Director of Intercollegiate Athletics. "We didn't just build this for seven Aztec football games, we built it for concerts, soccer matches, all the different things that you can do in there because we really want the entire community to have a reason to come to our building." As Wicker envisioned, the purpose-built stadium is already confirmed to host not only those seven football games between September 3 and November 26. On September 17, the San Diego Wave FC National Women's Soccer League team will play its first match on what will be permanent home soil after previously playing at USD's Torero Stadium. And parrotheads will descend on Snapdragon when Jimmy Buffet headlines the stadium's inaugural concert event with Jason Mraz on October 22. More announcements to the calendar are expected in the coming weeks in addition to confirmation of longer lead partnerships, sporting events, and SDSU athletics beyond football. For Wicker, a packed calendar is exactly what he'd envisioned all along. "One of the key things for me was that this had to be a building that could be used 365 days a year," he @ranchandcoast ranchandcoast.com 102 SEPTEMBER 2022 RANCH & COAST MAGAZINE BY DEANNA MURPHY | PHOTOGRAPHY BY VINCENT KNAKAL