In Philadelphia, Dan Norton reported the Temple BOT on Monday "unanimously voted to approve" $1M in spending "to explore the design of a new North Philly football complex." The stadium will cost $126M to build, but school President Neil Theobald "projected it would save" the university $21M in expenses "after the first seven years." He added that the price of construction "would come at no cost to students." The board "did not vote on whether to actually build the stadium" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 2/8). Also in Philadelphia, Snyder & Narducci noted Monday's decision "paves the way for designs to begin for a 35,000-seat stadium in the northwest corner of campus." Theobald said that if approved, construction "would begin" in '17. The move will "allow the university to proceed with conceptual designs of the proposed stadium, and look into parking and other impacts on the neighborhood" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 2/9).
INDOOR KIDS: Georgia AD Greg McGarity said that the school has "already exceeded" its goal of raising half of the $30M needed to pay for a 109,000-square-foot football practice facility, which has been under construction since mid-December. He said, "We’ve already exceeded our goal and we still have two big naming opportunities for the field and for the facility itself. ... The challenge now is to fund the whole thing since we’ve accomplished what we’ve accomplished, which is a lot in a short time" (AJC.com, 2/8).
COOL RUNNINGS: New UCF football coach Scott Frost has "asked the administration to update Nicholson Fieldhouse, the first indoor practice facility in the state of Florida, and add air-conditioning." UCF administrators "already started the process, with engineers visiting campus to inspect the facility within the past two weeks." The renovation "could happen by August, when preseason camp starts" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 2/9).
