Bucs ready to feel at home in Greene Stadium

East Tennessee State University is hoping its fans will prove that a famous saying from a baseball movie translates to football."If you build it, they will come," the voice in Kevin Costner's head said in "Field of Dreams."William B. Greene Jr. Stadium has little in common with a fictional baseball diamond in a cornfield, but everyone at ETSU thinks the new facility will be the crown jewel of their athletic department. Season-ticket sales have been robust and a standing-room-only crowd is expected for Saturday's opener against Limestone College."Everybody wants a home," ETSU linebacker Alonzo Francois said. "It's going to be awesome. It's ours. We don't have to share with a high school or drive over there. We can just walk on our own campus. It has an E on the field. That's really something, having that E to represent your school."I've been here since the first year we came back. We started from nothing. There was like 80 of us and there's only 19 now. To actually see this happen, the stadium being built, upgrading something every year, it's pretty awesome for us."The $25.8 million project began with a groundbreaking on Nov. 16, 2015. Construction actually started the following January. Since then, the team has practiced in the shadows of the ongoing work. I's been a striking parallel as the team progressed along with the stadium."I drive by it every day and every time there was something new to it, it kind of brought a tear to my eyes," said ETSU defensive coordinator Billy Taylor, who played for the Bucs and coached here before the program was dropped in 2003. "It's kind of like icing on the cake for the football program."The new stadium will have permanent seating for 7,694 with enough extra room for as many as 10,000.ETSU played its first two seasons after the program's return at Science Hill High School's Kermit Tipton Stadium. It was a nice temporary place to play, but with the maroon and gold adornments, the Bucs never felt truly at home."Science Hill was great, but this is going to be home," Taylor said.Taylor was a team captain, and while he appreciated the Minidome as the team's home during his playing days, he can't wait to get outside on a crisp autumn afternoon at his team's new digs."I think that's the way God intended football to be played, especially in a beautiful area like East Tennessee," he said. "We have the mountains behind it. It's going to be picturesque on an October afternoon with the leaves changing. I loved playing and coaching in the Dome, but it just has a different atmosphere. This is like college football is supposed to be."As the construction of the stadium progressed, the university allowed fans to take tours, hoping to encourage ticket sales. Those who saw the process came away impressed.As the program marked 100 days before the first game, fans donned hardhats and braved a blustery, rainy day to see the new stadium."I'm just overwhelmed at all the work that has gone on this year," said Kingsport's Mark Fleenor, who had already bought two season tickets and was planning to buy more. "We're very excited as alumni to see football back. I believe it's brought our entire community closer. I think they have some great leadership here."Jim Cox, also from Kingsport, is a former season-ticket holder from way back and he was all smiles after the tour."I'm very pleased," he said. "It's just amazing what they've done here and how it's coming along. You really don't realize how well a football stadium fits in this space here. They've really done a fine job. You can tell it's very well thought out and very well planned."Linebacker Jack Jones is also one of the original 19 players who practiced during the 2014 season without playing any games."We feel like the real deal now," Jones said. "It's beautiful. We're looking forward to playing in it. All we have to do is win in it now. Words can't explain. I'm sure it's gonna feel like home because everybody's going to be there from ETSU. We're going to have our colors, not high school colors."The other teams are going to know they're at ETSU."