It's in with the new, and out with the old, as the summer construction season is underway at Oregon St. Today is the day for the formal groundbreaking for the new basketball practice facility to be located adjacent to the existing Sports Performance Training Facility, behind Gill Coliseum, and the public is invited.
Architect's view of how the Basketball Practice Facility will look. (OSU Publicity Photo.)
Oregon St. University President Ed Ray, Athletic Director Bob De Carolis, men's basketball head coach Craig Robinson, and women's basketball head coach Scott Rueck are scheduled to participate in the groundbreaking celebration, which will be at 4 PM.
And there's action over at Reser as well, as the turf replacement project has started now that commencement, held last Sunday, is over.
The combination of the largest graduating class in the history of the University and having First Lady Michelle Obama deliver the commencement address (thanks to Robinson, the "First Brother In Law"), produced a crowd that left the rug at Reser in pretty rough shape.
A donation allowed for replacement of the turf a couple of years early, which will also result in the new turf extending all the way to the walls, eliminating the strip of asphalt that encircles the existing field, so university officials weren't concerned with what condition the crowd Sunday left the turf in. The extension all the way to the walls should improve the appearance of the stadium, but more importantly, will eliminate what has been a safety hazard on a few occasions, when action carried all the way onto the pavement.
By mid-week, crews were already rolling up sections of the turf, and the hauling has started. As progress continues, we will have additional glimpses of the look of the new field.
72 days until kickoff!
Go Beavs!
Andy_Wooldridge@yahoo.com