The University of Georgia Athletic
Association Board of Directors held its Fall meeting Friday on the UGA campus
to discuss both financial and athletic matters.
In a wide-ranging Athletic Director's
report, J. Reid Parker Director of Athletics Greg McGarity first praised the
Student Athlete Advisory Committee for its role in gathering a truckload of
relief supplies in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. ‘’We know these efforts to aid others
in time of need will always be a part of our culture for student-athletes,
staff and our partners,’’ McGarity said. ‘’Everyone affected by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma remain in our thoughts
and prayers.’’
McGarity also touched on the following
additional topics in his report:
1. Reflections on all the events
related to Georgia’s football win at Notre Dame last Saturday. He thanked the Notre Dame staff and
commended the host’s fans for their gracious hospitality extended to all UGA people
on the campus at South Bend. He
then implored all UGA fans to commit to be more welcoming and respectful at
every UGA home game, as Dawg fans were treated last weekend at during their
visit to Notre Dame.
2. After a presentation by Executive
Associate Athletic Director Josh Brooks on facility construction, McGarity
followed with by summarizing UGA’s investment in its facilities in the past
seven years. In that span, UGA
has received approval to invest over $150 million for enhancements to all of its
facilities. Of that $150
million, over $110 million can be attributed to improvements directly related
to the football program. These
projects have been funded by athletic department reserve funds, operating funds
and gifts from donors, while incurring a relatively small amount of debt.
3. Concurrent with the facility
enhancements, the Georgia Bulldog Club has experienced significant growth in
gifts, generating over $275 million from a combination of ticket priority
programs, Magill Society gifts, scholarship and coaching endowments and other
gifts during this seven-year span.
4. McGarity also called attention to
Georgia’s annual Football Letterman’s Day, which will take place Saturday at
the football game vs. Samford. During
halftime, UGA will pay tribute to one of its all-time greats, Charley Trippi,
as well as a host of other Dawg lettermen.
Brooks’ report on facilities included
updates on five projects:
Two of these projects were completed this summer:
Spec Towns Track resurfacing and Turner Soccer Complex renovation.
Three projects are currently
underway. The final phase of
renovations at Stegeman Coliseum includes a new scoreboard, suspended over the
midpoint of the basketball court; the replacement of all the existing spectator
seats; and the installation of light-emitting diode (LED) lights, also called
"ribbon" lighting around the upper facade of seating. An expansion of the Boyd Golf Center
that will include an additional 4,000 square feet. Finally, the West End Zone project at
Sanford Stadium that will provide 120,000 square feet of new and improved space
is well underway and will take approximately 17 months to complete.
McGarity followed the report from Brooks
by updating two projects that are currently under discussion for future construction:
1. The Equestrian Locker Room project. Located at the team’s facility in
Bishop, the project will include full locker room space for student-athletes,
coaches’ offices, meeting rooms and other team areas.
2. The Indoor Tennis Facility. UGAAA is currently working with
Campus Architects on three potential locations to expand or construct a new
facility. Two sites are within
the Dan Magill Complex and the other is located at the Turner Soccer/Softball
Complex on South Milledge Ave. Early
estimates on this project range between $10 million to $25 million.
More information on both projects will be
presented to the Board at its next meeting in February of 2018.
Other highlights of the meeting included:
1. Presentations by head basketball
coaches Mark Fox and Joni Taylor. Each
commented on the anticipation surrounding the start of the 2017-18 season, as
well as the impact the new, improved Stegeman Coliseum will have upon their
respective programs.
2. Faculty Athletics Representative
David Shipley gave a glowing academic report. The most prominent information that he shared was the combined 3.10
grade point average recorded by all of UGA’s student-athletes during the
2016-17 academic year. The men’s
cross country (3.32) and women’s equestrian (3.41) teams won Faculty Athletics
Representative Award for having the highest grades for the entire year.
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