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Construction on the $7.5 million facility in Jacksonville, Ala., began in early 2017, and will wrap up in time for the start of the 2018 season.
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Jacksonville State University Applauds New Baseball Stadium By Cindy Riley
Students and alums of Jacksonville State University (JSU) may be focused on football for the next several months, but come spring, they’ll be cheering on the Gamecocks baseball team in a new stadium. Construction on the $7.5 million facility in Jacksonville, Ala., began in early 2017, and will wrap up in time for the start of the 2018 season. “It’s very rewarding to see the progress of the stadium, and the anticipation for the facility is very high on campus,” said Tony Schmidt, JSU assistant sports information director. “It will be a great asset to the already beautiful JSU campus, and will be one of the first facilities that people see as they enter campus.” The stadium will include 1,000 individual chairback stadium seats with a roof canopy, new home and visitor dugouts, a new baseball clubhouse with a team meeting room, a locker room, coaches offices and an observation deck. Plans also include an enclosed batting facility, a new bullpen area, four VIP suites, a press and radio booth, concessions, a restroom and merchandise area. The highly anticipated project has been on the drawing board for quite some time. “It’s been in the work for many years, with the main funding for the project through fundraising and donors, said Schmidt, who added that passersby are taking note of the ongoing construction. “People saw a lot demolition and dirt work in the beginning after tearing down the old facility A lot of the work has been brick and concrete.” The park is being built around the existing Rudy Abbott Field at the corner of Rudy Abbott Highway and Pennsylvania Avenue. Players have had to make adjustments, to accommodate the construction schedule. “It’s had an impact on the team. JSU had to play its 2016 home games at Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Alabama, and the Gamecocks were on the road for 36 of the 55 games in 2016, including the first 11 games on the road,” said Schmidt. “Practice time has been difficult. JSU practiced in Oxford a lot during the 2016 season,” said Schmidt. According to Schmidt, the renovations will benefit the Gamecocks when it comes to attracting new talent. “It will help immensely with recruiting, as it will be
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one of the best stadiums in Alabama and among the schools at our level.” Early in the summer, the program received a combined private gift of $2 million, the largest ever made to the university. The donation ignited a campaign for private funds to help finance the project. “I cannot express how thankful we are to our leadgift donors, president Beehler and the board of trustees for approving this very important project,” said Greg Seitz, JSU director of athletics. “The new baseball facility will allow our team to continue to compete at the highest level, further demonstrating JSU Athletics’ commitment to enhancing the experience of our student-athletes. “This is an exciting time for our baseball program and for our Gamecocks community. This is the next step in the process, and puts us closer to having a state-of-the-art home for what is already a top-notch baseball program. We can’t wait to see what this new stadium does for both the competitive and recruiting landscape of our program.” “The new stadium is going to mean so much to our baseball program,” head coach Jim Case stated in a release. “It will provide our student-athletes with a first-class facility, while also improving the overall fan experience. Obviously, this will be a great recruiting attraction for our future student-athletes to help us to continue to have a championship program.” Former JSU baseball player Joe McGuire is gaining experience as part of the crew helping build the Gamecocks’ new field, which is being constructed by general contractor Morris Building Constructors Inc. of Oxford, Ala. Patrick Kirk, vice president of Morris Building Constructors, said working on a new stadium around an existing baseball field is extremely challenging. “The site has very limited working room,” said McGuire. “This project has a short duration, and the building is a very complicated structure using almost every type construction, such as concrete, masonry that includes pre-cast and brick veneer, structural steel, joist and deck, steel roof trusses and metal deck, shingle roof, metal roof, wood and metal stud framing.” Multiple interior finishes also are required, includsee STADIUM page 6