Buffs AD George Talks Facilities Upgrades, Early Games, Schedule
August 04, 2019 | General, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Colorado Athletic Director Rick George is never at rest.
While the "new" hasn't yet worn off the CU Champions Center and Indoor Practice Facility — arguably the most ambitious project in CU Athletics history — George is continuously eyeing the next facilities improvement for the department.
Not that CU has been treading water since moving into the Champions Center in the fall of 2015. The Buffs are consistently upgrading the tools available to their student-athletes. CU has become a recognized national leader in the area of health and wellness and continues to be on the cutting edge of resource developments in mental health, nutrition and academics.
But George also knows that CU's facilities are in constant need of upgrades, and he steadily maintains a priority list of what's next.
On top of that list is Folsom Field. Colorado is currently installing what will be a first-class wi-fi system that will significantly improve the game-day experience for fans, but there is much more that needs to be done at CU's iconic facility.
"There are a few things that we want to improve," George said at Saturday's CU media day. "Obviously, we want to improve the sound system at some point, but again it's a function of money. We need to fix the west side of the stadium, our Flatirons Club. We need to redo that whole area. I'd like to do that in the next two or three years because I think it's an important part of our atmosphere for our fans."
George also noted that some Folsom improvements were part of the Champions Center construction, including the building of the Arrow Touchdown Club, which turned a formerly little utilized end zone bleacher section into a highly sought seating area.
"This end zone used to be half full and now it's full every weekend," George said. " We need to fix the west side (Flatirons Club/press box), which is probably our number one priority."
But George noted that CU's list of improvements is more than just football and Folsom. The question, of course, is how and when Colorado can acquire funding for such projects.
"Our lacrosse field needs some upgrades and soccer needs some upgrades for lights," George said. "We'd like to build an indoor tennis facility at some point as well. There are a number of things we need to upgrade and we'll prioritize those and get started on those fairly shortly."
George also addressed a number of other topics on media day, ranging from the Pac-12's announcement that it is considering early kickoffs for games (10 a.m. in Boulder, 9 a.m. on the West Coast) to the Colorado State, Nebraska and Air Force games.
On the 10 a.m. games: "A 10 a.m. game makes sense under certain conditions. We practice in the morning, so competitively I'm not as concerned about that. Hosting a game would be a real challenge, particularly in early fall when there are youth sports leagues going on. We have a number of fans in Denver, Colorado Springs, and other areas that it would be a real challenge for them to make it down here for a 10 a.m. game. Right now it's kind of a wait and see situation for us. Coach (Mel) Tucker and I have talked about it and I can almost guarantee that you won't see a 10 a.m. game this year, because we do have some say in that decision."
On the Colorado State series, which will see the final Denver game played this year and the final game of the series for two seasons played next year in Fort Collins: "I've wanted to play this game on campus since I got here. I think a rivalry game like that belongs on our campus. I think there are games that could be played in Mile High Stadium that make sense as the host institution. I wouldn't exclude that from our thinking moving forward that we play a big game in Mile High Stadium that isn't CSU. I think we should play CSU. I don't think we should play them our first game of the year, and we won't moving forward. I like that rivalry. I don't necessarily think we need to play it every year, but I do think playing on the Front Range makes sense for us because it gives Colorado football great exposure."
On the home-and-home series with Air Force, which begins this year in Boulder, then concludes with a 2022 game at the Academy: "Playing Air Force and their style of play is really challenging. I think that game will be one of our highest selling games. Playing at 11 a.m. against Air Force with all their fans coming out will certainly create a great atmosphere. All of our games are selling well and again I think it's the energy that the community feels and the excitement they have for the season."
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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