UNT Announces Agreement with DATCU
7/31/2023 9:00:00 AM | Football
University partners with Denton-based credit union for landmark partnership
DENTON, Texas – North Texas Athletics and DATCU entered into a new football stadium naming rights and campus agreement, as announced Monday by UNT Vice President and Director of Athletics Jared Mosley.
UNT's football stadium now will be recognized as DATCU Stadium with first competition beginning with the 2023 Mean Green football season.
The fully integrated partnership across campus makes DATCU the official financial institution and exclusive credit union of UNT Athletics and the UNT Alumni Association and gives university students and staff access to discounted financial services, UNT merchandise, and UNT event tickets. DATCU also will provide financial literacy training and seminars to help students develop the soft skills needed to successfully enter today's dynamic workforce.
"I'm thrilled to have DATCU joining the Mean Green family as our new stadium sponsor," Mosley said. "The opportunity to add a partner that has such deep ties and association with UNT and the city of Denton could not be better as we launch into this new era of athletics in the American Athletic Conference. In addition to the stadium naming, we are excited to have a partnership that will touch several campus areas that support our shared goal of enhancing services and deepening engagement across our various constituent groups."
The stadium, which seats 30,850, opened in 2011 as Apogee Stadium. Entering its 12th season of competition in 2023, it was designed by the same team that created the spectacular Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium, award-winning architects HKS Sports and Entertainment Group and Manhattan Construction.
UNT's stadium features two huge, state-of-the-art video boards, 21 luxury suites, 750 club seats, high-tech facilities for broadcast and print media, banquet rooms and an 1,800-square-foot team apparel store.
Founded in 1936 on UNT's campus, DATCU started as a not-for-profit financial institution when Dr. V.Y. Craig, Ross Compton, and 11 other area educators pooled together $650 to provide low interest rate loans and higher interest rate savings accounts. Today, DATCU holds more than $1.5 billion in assets with more than 100,000 members.
"As a core value, we believe in supporting our communities," said Melanie Vest, DATCU President and UNT alumna. "Our history and roots as the Denton Area Teachers Credit Union have us firmly engrained into the UNT culture so this partnership is the perfect hometown match."
DATCU Day, celebrating the naming of DATCU Stadium, is scheduled for Sept. 2, when UNT takes the field against California from the Pac 12 Conference. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. CT on ESPNU. The matchup also serves as the Mean Green's first game as a member of the American Athletic Conference.
"We are excited to welcome DATCU as the new sponsor of our stadium, home of Mean Green Football. UNT and DATCU have had a longstanding relationship since DATCU's founding by two North Texas professors in the 1930s," UNT President Neal Smatresk said. "We deeply appreciate the support that this sponsorship means for our community. I look forward to working together with DATCU as we start our first season with the American Athletic Conference and all the excitement this will bring to our students, faculty, staff, and community.
"It's an exciting time for the Mean Green and UNT Athletics as we embark on this new journey with The American and DATCU."
UNT was assisted in the national search for a naming rights and campus partner by Independent Sports & Entertainment (ISE), a sales representation, management, sales, consulting, and marketing agency with offices across the United States. LEARFIELD, a media, data, and technology services leader in intercollegiate athletics and UNT's multimedia rights partner, worked with the university and ISE on this agreement.
UNT's football stadium now will be recognized as DATCU Stadium with first competition beginning with the 2023 Mean Green football season.
The fully integrated partnership across campus makes DATCU the official financial institution and exclusive credit union of UNT Athletics and the UNT Alumni Association and gives university students and staff access to discounted financial services, UNT merchandise, and UNT event tickets. DATCU also will provide financial literacy training and seminars to help students develop the soft skills needed to successfully enter today's dynamic workforce.
"I'm thrilled to have DATCU joining the Mean Green family as our new stadium sponsor," Mosley said. "The opportunity to add a partner that has such deep ties and association with UNT and the city of Denton could not be better as we launch into this new era of athletics in the American Athletic Conference. In addition to the stadium naming, we are excited to have a partnership that will touch several campus areas that support our shared goal of enhancing services and deepening engagement across our various constituent groups."
The stadium, which seats 30,850, opened in 2011 as Apogee Stadium. Entering its 12th season of competition in 2023, it was designed by the same team that created the spectacular Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium, award-winning architects HKS Sports and Entertainment Group and Manhattan Construction.
UNT's stadium features two huge, state-of-the-art video boards, 21 luxury suites, 750 club seats, high-tech facilities for broadcast and print media, banquet rooms and an 1,800-square-foot team apparel store.
Founded in 1936 on UNT's campus, DATCU started as a not-for-profit financial institution when Dr. V.Y. Craig, Ross Compton, and 11 other area educators pooled together $650 to provide low interest rate loans and higher interest rate savings accounts. Today, DATCU holds more than $1.5 billion in assets with more than 100,000 members.
"As a core value, we believe in supporting our communities," said Melanie Vest, DATCU President and UNT alumna. "Our history and roots as the Denton Area Teachers Credit Union have us firmly engrained into the UNT culture so this partnership is the perfect hometown match."
DATCU Day, celebrating the naming of DATCU Stadium, is scheduled for Sept. 2, when UNT takes the field against California from the Pac 12 Conference. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. CT on ESPNU. The matchup also serves as the Mean Green's first game as a member of the American Athletic Conference.
"We are excited to welcome DATCU as the new sponsor of our stadium, home of Mean Green Football. UNT and DATCU have had a longstanding relationship since DATCU's founding by two North Texas professors in the 1930s," UNT President Neal Smatresk said. "We deeply appreciate the support that this sponsorship means for our community. I look forward to working together with DATCU as we start our first season with the American Athletic Conference and all the excitement this will bring to our students, faculty, staff, and community.
"It's an exciting time for the Mean Green and UNT Athletics as we embark on this new journey with The American and DATCU."
UNT was assisted in the national search for a naming rights and campus partner by Independent Sports & Entertainment (ISE), a sales representation, management, sales, consulting, and marketing agency with offices across the United States. LEARFIELD, a media, data, and technology services leader in intercollegiate athletics and UNT's multimedia rights partner, worked with the university and ISE on this agreement.
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