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Phase II - Facilities Push Shows Depth: Construction for A&M athletics continues to help Build Champions
9/8/07
DEVELOPMENT CORNER
By Rusty Burson
At this time of the year, college sports fans are usually quite familiar with their school’s depth charts, as hopes for the ensuing seasons often hinge on how many holes must be filled.
At Texas A&M, the depth charts for football, soccer, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, etc. suggest that 2007-08 could be a banner year for the Aggies. And in terms of the long-term prognosis for the overall health and prosperity of A&M’s athletic department, even the biggest holes on campus are a reason for optimism.
At Reed Arena, construction workers on the Cox-McFerrin Basketball Center project are currently in the process of digging a monstrous hole that will go down 36 feet into the ground. Kevin Hurley, Texas A&M’s Associate Athletic Director for Facilities, estimates that the excavation process will require the removal of 3,000 dump-truck loads of dirt.
Once the soil has been removed and the foundational piers have been placed in the ground, construction on the 68,000 square-foot basketball facility can begin. When completed, the facility will feature a foyer rotunda entrance, two practice gymnasiums, significantly larger locker room facilities than what the men’s and women’s teams currently use, players’ lounges, coaches’ offices, a weight room, team meeting rooms, a training/medical room and video rooms.
The $23 million facility, which is tentatively scheduled to be completed by mid-October of 2008, is already having a positive impact on Texas A&M’s recruiting efforts. And combined with the momentum that has already been created by the recent successes of the men’s and women’s basketball programs at A&M, the construction of the Cox-McFerrin Basketball Center could elevate Aggie basketball into a new national stratosphere.
“You want to be able to seize the moment and the momentum that has already been created, particularly in recruiting, by having all of the facilities in place that are going to attract the top players in the country,” said A&M women’s coach Gary Blair said. “This facility can be that extra piece of the puzzle here at A&M that transforms us from a good program into a nationally elite one.”
Another hole that will soon be filled on campus exists under the towering skins of the multipurpose indoor McFerrin Athletic Center. The A&M football team has enjoyed full use of the south building throughout preseason camp, but construction of the larger, north building was slowed by the unusually heavy rainfall that College Station experienced this past spring and early summer.
Athletics Director Bill Byrne said that construction workers were required to pull cranes out of the muck and mire on three different occasions. Despite the delays, the skins on the north building have been finished, and the brick entrance to the front of the building is nearing completion.
In mid-to-late September, the foundation of the multipurpose facility will be poured. Hurley says that the floor of the building will require a 10-inch deep layer of concrete that covers four and a half acres.
“We’re projecting now that the multipurpose center will be fully functional in late fall of 2008,” Byrne said.
These two construction projects are a result of fundraising efforts through the 12th Man Foundation’s Championship Vision Phase II capital campaign. Kay ’02 and Jerry ’72 Cox, of Houston, have served in the role as the chair of Phase II funding.
Since Cox officially announced the public phase of the capital campaign, approximately $49.7 million has been raised toward the projects. To date, the 12th Man Foundation’s Major Gifts Department has received 11 seven-figure donations and 40 six-figure gifts for Phase II efforts.
“We’re very excited and grateful for all that has been accomplished thus far,” Jerry Cox said. “But the reality is that much more still needs to be done. Our initial estimate for these two projects was $37 million. As time passed and costs and building design changed, the total jumped to $51 million. Now, with final bids and plans in place, we estimate the project completion to be $60 million.
“We are literally reshaping the athletic landscape at Texas A&M, and it comes with a steep price. We need our former students and fans to continue to make a financial commitment in our efforts to build champions and establish Texas A&M as one of the nation’s elite athletic programs.”
Stu Starner, the 12th Man Foundation’s senior vice president of major giving, said that several seven-figure naming opportunities are available for those who may be in position to help close out the campaign. But Starner also pointed out that those are not the only types of gifts the 12th Man Foundation is seeking.
“We must identify and cultivate a new generation of major gift donors,” Starner said. “And we must receive more gifts in the $25,000 to $250,000 gift range. Gift agreements are available up to a five-year period, creating a significant opportunity for our donors to increase gift size. A $25,000 gift could be quite daunting, but by giving $5,000 per year over a five-year period, it could be much more feasible.”
To be part of the successful completion of these facilities, please contact the 12th Man Foundation’s Major Gifts Group at 979-846-8892 or at majorgifts@12thmanfoundation.com.
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