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  • Issue #468: Tampa Lands SEC Media Days • Moez Limayem in Line for USF Presidency • Intricate Art from Bartow • Rays Enter Zalupski Era

Issue #468: Tampa Lands SEC Media Days • Moez Limayem in Line for USF Presidency • Intricate Art from Bartow • Rays Enter Zalupski Era

10/1/2025

Author

Ted Grellner
01 Oct

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GOOD MORNING

Dr Ted
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In this issue of NewTampa | WesleyChapel
Local Pulse

Our Event Calendar 

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Local News

— SEC Media Days Coming to Tampa in 2026

— USF Taps Former Dean Moez Limayem as Presidential Finalist

Of Interest

— Bartow Artist Draws Attention With Thousands of Tiny Scratches

Sports

— Zalupski Era Begins: Tampa Bay Rays Have a New Owner


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SEC Media Days Coming to Tampa in 2026

The 2026 SEC Media Days will be held in Tampa, Florida, marking the first time the city hosts the high-profile four-day event, according to On3’s Brett McMurphy. Scheduled for next July, this continues a trend of rotating locations—Tampa will be the fourth different host in four years.

While Tampa has previously welcomed SEC basketball tournaments, this is its first time hosting the football-centric Media Days, a key kickoff for the college football season.

This announcement is part of a wave of major college football events headed to the city. In 2027, Raymond James Stadium will temporarily host the Georgia-Florida rivalry game while Jacksonville renovates its stadium. Then in 2028, the same venue will host the College Football Playoff National Championship, its first since 2017.

Tampa is positioning itself as a major SEC and college football destination in the years ahead.

USF Taps Former Dean Moez Limayem as Presidential Finalist

Moez Limayem, current president of the University of North Florida, is the sole finalist to become the next president of the University of South Florida. The announcement marks a potential return to Tampa for Limayem, who served as dean of USF’s Muma College of Business for a decade before joining UNF in 2022.

Limayem called USF and the region “special” to his family and expressed deep ties to the community. His selection follows a national search and now awaits approval from USF trustees and the Florida Board of Governors.

USF highlighted Limayem’s leadership at UNF, noting record enrollment during his tenure. If confirmed, he would buck Florida’s recent trend of appointing university presidents with political backgrounds.

Limayem holds a Ph.D. in Information Systems from the University of Minnesota and has also served at the University of Arkansas. Community forums and a final vote will follow in the coming weeks.

Bartow Artist Draws Attention With Thousands of Tiny Scratches

Tifane Worsley, a Bartow-based artist, has found her passion in the unique medium of scratchboard art, a craft she discovered just 18 months ago. Unlike painting, scratchboard involves removing India ink from a clay surface using fine blades and tools, creating highly detailed, textured images—one tiny scratch at a time.

Worsley describes the process as meticulous and therapeutic, requiring total focus. Her first piece, a bumblebee, won third place at a Lakeland Arts Association show. She's currently working on a moose-in-the-wild piece, using varying pressure to achieve light, shadow, and intricate animal textures.

Her animal-focused art is inspired by her past work at a sanctuary. Each piece can take up to five days to complete. Worsley hopes her work will invite viewers to look closer and feel transported into each scene. Once her collection grows, she plans to host a solo exhibit.

Here’s an astonishing fact about an unusual art medium:

Human hair has been used as a primary medium in hyper-detailed embroidery art.

In the Victorian era, artists and mourners would use locks of human hair to create intricate portraits, jewelry, and wall art—often in memory of deceased loved ones. But even more astonishing, contemporary artists today still use human hair for hyperrealistic embroideries and sculptures due to its fine texture, strength, and symbolic connection to identity and memory.

Some modern examples involve embroidering portraits with single strands of hair threaded through fabric to simulate the look of pencil sketching—but with actual human hair. It's a rare, delicate, and deeply personal medium that pushes both technical and emotional boundaries in art.

Zalupski Era Begins: Tampa Bay Rays Have
a New Owner

The Tampa Bay Rays officially have a new owner after a group led by Patrick Zalupski closed on the reported $1.7 billion deal. Zalupski, CEO of Dream Finders Homes, takes over from Stuart Sternberg, who remains as a limited minority partner. The group also includes Ken Babby (Fast Forward Sports), and other investors with deep local ties, like Dan Doyle of DEX Imaging and Fred Ridley.

Zalupski will serve as MLB control person, while Babby oversees day-to-day operations. Their first major challenge: securing a permanent stadium. The team’s lease at Tropicana Field ends in 2028, and the failure of a $1.3B stadium plan has reignited uncertainty.

The Rays’ past decade saw on-field success but low attendance, and Zalupski’s ownership signals a new push to keep the team rooted in Tampa Bay—if a viable stadium solution emerges soon.

What’s New In Tampa Bay
Oct 2025
Source: tampamagazines.com

Top Things to do in Tampa Bay
9/29 - 10/5
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Things to do Around Tampa & WC
9/25 - 10/1
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Tampa Bay:
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