University of North Carolina Athletics
Cunningham Details Facility Plans
November 18, 2015 | Football
By Adam Lucas
Carolina football got some big news on Wednesday, as Bubba Cunningham presented a proposal to the Board of Trustees finance and facilities committee to develop plans for an indoor practice facility on campus.
The Board of Governors gave the plan funding authority two weeks ago; the entire cost, which is unknown at this point, will be provided by private fundraising from The Rams Club. The plans for the indoor facility are a tangible and significant financial commitment to football at the University of North Carolina.
"I appreciate the support and committment from Bubba Cunningham, the Board of Trustees and The Rams Club," said head coach Larry Fedora. "This facility will help us continue to build a championship program."
The Tar Heels currently use the Eddie Smith Field House when they need to practice indoors. But that is not a full-sized venue, and it is also heavily used by other sports. A new indoor facility would potentially free up the existing Field House for use by track and recreational sports, while providing additional indoor space for football, both soccer programs, and both lacrosse programs.
Additional parts of the plan Cunningham presented to the trustees included a new lacrosse and soccer stadium that will benefit all four of those programs. The existing home of the soccer and lacrosse programs, Fetzer Field, was built in 1935. Although it has become one of the most historic sites for Olympic college sports in the country, an update to match the national prestige of Carolina's incredibly successful soccer and lacrosse programs was needed. Between them, the four programs have won 29 NCAA titles, and all except men's lacrosse have won at least one national championship in the past five years.
“The entire plan is a continued investment in several of our programs, and that includes football,” Cunningham said. “We want to continue to provide great facilities to our student-athletes, and this enables us to do that.”
The next step in the process for the indoor facility is to take it to the Rams Club, have it approved, and schedule and obtain the fundraising. An exact site for the structure has not been selected.
