http://www.espn.com/blog/acc/post/_/id/98949/jimbo-fisher-says-new-football-facility-in-the-works-for-florida-state
Coach Jimbo Fisher has worked tirelessly to get facility upgrades at Florida State during his time as head coach, from building an indoor facility to getting facelifts for the locker room and coaches offices to improving and expanding Doak Campbell Stadium.
Up next?
A standalone football facility.
Fisher said Friday that plans to build one are now in the works, and he hopes to have plans to show boosters when his spring speaking tour begins next month.
"We need room. We need meeting space, player development areas. You’ve got to have those areas and also to show off your history. That’s what Florida State is known for, being a great football program," Fisher said. "You can never stand still. If you’re not evolving and moving, people are going to bypass you. You’ve got to keep going. The great programs never settle. We’re always looking for that edge. It’s going to help recruiting. It’s going to help player development. We get a lot of guys that are three-and-out, so we’ve got to have space for them to get them developed as quickly as we can so we can get production out of them."
Fisher said an architect has already come by to start looking at drawing up plans. No set space has been set aside for building the facility. Fisher would prefer it to connect to the indoor facility, just steps away from the football stadium.
"People realize it’s not an arms race, it’s a competitive race," Fisher said. "It’s the cost of doing business if you want to be elite."
Clemson just recently opened a standalone facility to much fanfare, and other schools like Florida and Georgia have their own plans for the buildings. These are all schools Florida State must recruit against.
"I don’t care what they’ve got," Fisher said. "I’m worried about what we’ve got. If I don’t think it’s going to make a difference in our program for these kids to develop as people, students and players, I won’t ask. I didn’t grow up with a lot. I was taught if you need it, do what you’ve got to do to be successful but don't waste. I’m not going to do that. But there’s things you’ve got to have to be successful and that’s the next step, in my opinion."
Beyond that? Fisher wants to get an academic center for student-athletes built as well. But first, he wants the ball moving on the football facility.
That parking lot probably makes the most sense. I always figured that would be where the lacrosse field would go if/when that happens*. Granted, both might be able to fit in that lot if planned accordingly. I'm just not sure where else would make sense, the lots around the circus would probably next best.
ReplyDeleteI still prefer football keep the Moore Center but other sports get their own stand-alone facility with football taking over the vacated space. Logically that makes more sense than moving football athletes even further from the stadium/practice fields.
And I'm still a proponent of razing Tully to build a massive sports facility there (new indoor volleyball plus several stories of olympic sports on top? Sounds pretty good to me. You keep football compact, keep all existing parking, and upgrade every sport on campus. It would cost additional money in order to raze and rebuild Tully. So that's a negative.
*FSU's mentioned lacrosse, it's a fairly popular ACC sport, a growing sport nationally, and one that's fast-paced and fun to watch (ie, high scoring, as compared to soccer). And I want to see it happen at FSU.
I prefer the Moore Center as well. Location wise, it makes the most sense (along with the 'other sports' stand alone).
DeleteI completely disagree with adding any more sports. As the revenue gap grows, FSu is going to struggle more and more to compete at an elite level and donations will thin out because fans aren't donating for mediocre. FSU can't afford to add more teams AND be elite. Endow scholarships and then MAYBE you can start adding more sports/ie expenses.
We know Wilcox said FSU will have to add another women's sport for Title IX compliance. Of the two sports he mentioned, I'd obviously prefer lacrosse. It's a better spectator sport, ACC schools compete in it and it's popular in the ACC's footprint, including affluent Mid-Atlantic and New England regions. On the flip side, triathlon would allow FSU to get in on the ground floor and be nationally competitive like with beach volleyball, and would almost certainly involve less scholarships and lower costs/athlete.
DeleteGranted, Wilcox didn't explain why another sport was needed even though beach volleyball was added 6ish years ago. Nor did he indicate a timeline for when a new sport might be added. So who knows what's up with that.
And I'm starting to get a little tired of the arms race in college, even if Jimbo tries to deny that's what it is. I don't blame Jimbo. He was hired to do a job and his job now requires him demanding for more money every year.
I would rather remove sports (men's for title 9) than add more. It is smarter to be elite in a few sports than mediocre in many.
DeleteFSU is getting in over it's head $$$ wise. It doesn't have the money to keep up. I promise you I am right on this.
My intent wasn't to prove who was right/wrong. I was just rehashing what was known (which I'm sure you already knew), combined with my opinion. Your suggestion would presumably work. It just doesn't seem realistic that FSU will go that route, and if I'm understanding your mindset, as long as any sport doesn't eat into football ("the breadwinner") in particular, it shouldn't really matter much. Should it?
ReplyDelete