Oklahoma AD Joe Castiglione yesterday "looked like a proud parent as he ushered members of the media along for their first tour" of OU's football complex south of Owen Field’s end zone, according to Tyler Palmateer of the NORMAN TRANSCRIPT. Castiglione said that the "completed 132,000-square foot facility -- fully functional and impressive, only if lacking some signage and graphics -- was two years in the making, four if counting the planning process." The full project also "includes seating and fan amenities, which were finished prior" to the '16 season. The total project cost $160M, "provided from private donations and athletic revenue." The entire facility is "secured by a biometric system that uses thumbprint entry." Rooms where OU football players dress, rest or hang out are the "most luxurious spaces in the facility." The players’ lounge has "brick walls with roughly 15 couches, complete with flat-screen TVs and a supplement bar housing every health snack imaginable." The locker room is "lined in OU’s glowing state-of-the art lockers, ornamented with each player’s image" and "feels like the command center of a spaceship, complete with a gigantic interlocking OU symbol on the ceiling in LED lighting" (NORMAN TRANSCRIPT, 8/14).
THE GOOD STUFF: In Tulsa, Cody Stavenhagen writes OU’s "lavish new team center" was "designed and built with input from many past and present OU student-athletes." The project is "nearing" 100% completion. OU’s medical center is "far larger than previous space and features high-tech equipment such as a hydrotherapy room." The wide-open locker room is as "impressive as it gets, with a futuristic look and custom graphics." The locker room "covers 12,000 square feet, counting the cold and hot tubs, which are one of the facility’s crown jewels." Cold tub water "stays at 54 degrees, and there’s a waterfall structure on the room’s far end." The "biggest sell is the room’s adjustable lighting, which can be dimmed to look like a high-end Vegas spa with a neon glow." One of the "most striking areas is OU’s new weight room and indoor turf." The space "totals 30,000 square feet and is designed to accommodate as many student-athletes as possible" (TULSA WORLD, 8/14).
BIG UPGRADE: In Oklahoma City, Ryan Aber writes it is a "far cry" from what OU has "dealt with the last two seasons when they crammed into temporary trailers." The locker room is "designed to encourage players to get to know guys they otherwise wouldn't." Instead of being "bunched by position groups, the players are randomly set around the room." Aber notes the weight room and indoor turf area can be "utilized by all sports, not just football." Boulder-based performance analysis equipment maker Zybek Sports exec Jamie Neaves yesterday was "working to get the electronics for a long force plate working." The plate, among other things, will "eliminate the need to hand-time 40-yard dashes and other conditioning measures." OU is the "first university in the country to use the technology." Not only "will the player's overall time be measured but the plate can measure each step's vertical and horizontal force so athletes can maximize their performance." There are "similar systems to measure vertical jump as well as height and wingspan" (OKLAHOMAN, 8/14).
