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GREENSBORO -- Wake Forest University's football stadium is taking on a new identity, and that's not necessarily surprising on its face. Corporate sponsorship deals in American sports are older than most of the athletes who take the field. What's different about the BB&T-Wake-Groves Stadium relationship, announced Wednesday, is the line it walks.

Under the terms of the 10-year arrangement -- with unspecified financial considerations -- the Winston-Salem-based bank will not completely push the Groves name out of the place. University officials said the family will be honored more prominently on the physical site of the facility than ever before. Those who attend games will see "Groves Stadium" in bigger, bolder letters, for example.

But in addition to obtaining naming rights to the field, BB&T has effectively purchased exclusivity in the school's public references to the facility. Starting with Saturday's 2007 home opener against Nebraska, Wake says it plays home football games at BB&T Field at Wake Forest University.

"We're going to start making the transition this year," athletics director Ron Wellman said. "I don't know how quickly the media will adopt it, but we are referring to BB&T Field starting on Saturday."

The subtle distinction cuts the single biggest check in a $40 million-plus upgrade project and allows the school to maintain a vestige of homage to Henry H. Groves Sr., whose donation spearheaded the 1940 construction of a stadium at the school's original home in Wake County. When the school moved to Winston-Salem in 1957, the Groves name remained on the structure that is currently undergoing renovation.

"It's a feather in Ron Wellman's cap that he was able to elevate the program to the point where we could successfully land a deal like this," said Barry Faircloth, the athletics administrator in charge of the Deacon Tower project. "It's great for our program in the long term. Sponsorships are part of athletics."

Wake becomes the sixth NCAA Division I-A football program to sell such naming rights in football; its arrangement is essentially a combination of two other naming methods.

A year ago, the University of Maryland reached an agreement that gives primacy to the corporate sponsor, but does not strip the name of Harry Clifton "Curley" Byrd, a former university president, from public references. The Terrapins say they play at Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium.

The other model is the one commonly undertaken by schools building entirely new facilities. Troy University in Alabama plays its games at Movie Gallery Stadium, and the University of Louisville's home is Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.

Faircloth said the Groves family was consulted before the announcement.

The BB&T deal will essentially finish the funding of a seven-story tower that includes premium seating and other high-end amenities. The stadium renovation plan also calls for phases to upgrade concessions areas, Bridger Field House and tailgating space around the stadium.

"This was a major hurdle," Faircloth said. "This sponsorship puts us in good financial shape through Phase 3, which includes the tower. Phases 4-6 are pending funding."

Contact Rob Daniels at 373-7028 or rdaniels@news-record.com