SALEM, Va. – In 2018, the Division III National Football Championship, known as the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, will not be played in Salem for the first time since 1993.
Also, Men’s Division III Basketball and Women’s Division II Softball also will not be played in Salem after the spring of 2018.
“It has been an incredible run,” says Carey Harveycutter, Salem’s tourism director. “For a city our size to host
nearly 100 NCAA events of this magnitude is one of the greatest civic success stories ever in the Commonwealth. This is something all of the localities in Virginia’s Blue Ridge region should be very proud of on a number of levels.”
In a news release issued on Tuesday, while the city of Salem believes its facilities rank among the best in the region, it acknowledges that newer fields and stadiums with more amenities have been built on campuses and in communities across the country since Salem first got into the NCAA business 25 years ago.
The Men’s Final Four Basketball weekend for Division III has been at the Salem Civic Center since 1996, according to the city of Salem. Its final run in Salem will take place next March, just a few months after the arena turns 50-years-old.
The city will see less visitors as a whole. Restaurants like All Sports Salem usually sees a boost in business during the games, with most of them televised around the sports café.
"It brought in a lot of business we would have people come in after the game they will come in before the game. I'm sure it's going to hurt a lot of towns around here," said Angie Burnett, Manager and Bartender.
"In December there's not a lot of traveling public on the roads in December unless they're going home for Christmas. They're not staying at hotels or eating in restaurants so that will be the biggest hit," said Harveycutter.
Salem’s partner through all of the DIII Championships has been the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, and that relationship will continue into the future. The ODAC will be on-board when NCAA Women’s Basketball comes to Salem in 2019 and 2021 at the brand new Cregger Center on the Roanoke College campus.
Women’s Division III Softball and Women’s Division III Lacrosse also will be back in Salem in 2021 and 2022 at the Moyer Complex and Roanoke College’s Kerr Stadium.
In addition, Kerr Stadium will host the Women’s Division II Lacrosse Championship in 2021.
In 2019, Roanoke will host the Men's Division III Wrestling Championship at the Berglund Center, with Ferrum College serving as the host.