With signs now attached and hiring for store staff fully active, opening day for the Statesboro Academy Sports+Outdoors is nearing – though an official first day has yet to be announced.

The exterior signs were attached earlier this month to the front of the store located on Northside Drive East, in the long-vacant former Publix supermarket location in University Commons.

Renovations on the building began in December and Academy Sports confirmed a store would open inside the center that contains the Red Claw, El Sombrero and Lucky Garden restaurants and a vape and smoke shop.

According to the Academy website, an average store has between 50 and 80 employees, including store managers, department leads and full and part-time staff members. The Statesboro store has set up a temporary hiring office across Northside Drive in the Southern Square Shopping Center near Home Depot.

The company said job seekers are welcome to stop by the office or apply online at career.academy.com

The Statesboro store will be the 24th Academy Sports to open in Georgia and the 340th across 22 states.

Academy Sports+Outdoors Inc. is based in Katy, Texas, a suburb of Houston. It is a publicly-traded company with a ticker symbol of ASO on the NASDAQ stock exchange. Academy reported $6 billion in revenue for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2026 and it currently has a market cap of $3 billion.

On the newly established Statesboro-Academy site, the company states: “We pride ourselves on offering top brands, expert advice, and unbeatable value to keep your family active and inspired. Stop by and see us at the University Commons shopping mall today. Let's get outside and play!”