When does South endzone construction begin?

[SmooBoy]

May have been mentioned somewhere. Guessing it's awaiting matching funding.

Taking the grassy hill away from students for the 9/24 Froggie battle seems wrong, as this game will have the most Ford buzz in years.

[digman52]

I read that they would wait until they have enough funds to start, usually 80% on large builds.

It said they hoped to start it in late 2022.

[Water Pony]

I read that they would wait until they have enough funds to start, usually 80% on large builds.

It said they hoped to start it in late 2022.

Seems logical, since we haven't done the Design yet. And, 80% commitments has been the rule for other facilities, e.g. Swimming Complex.

[DiamondM75]

May have been mentioned somewhere. Guessing it's awaiting matching funding.

Taking the grassy hill away from students for the 9/24 Froggie battle seems wrong, as this game will have the most Ford buzz in years.

They are waiting on your check for the balance.

[Bergermeister]

Without some rendition of a grassy knoll, the only place that has drawn large crowds of students is eliminated. They’ve been herded all over the east side and when they found their niche, there is a proposal to install even more seating that will rarely be occupied. SMU will never have enough fans. Better get in a conference that travels or score some heavyweights for non-conference games.

[CBpony]

This stadium expansion is harebrained unless there is some under the table promise with the ACC/PAC that by building this we'll get a conference invite. I don't understand this move at all. The grass hill is/was a nice feature

[HarvCrimYaleBlue]

This stadium expansion is harebrained unless there is some under the table promise with the ACC/PAC that by building this we'll get a conference invite. I don't understand this move at all. The grass hill is/was a nice feature

I agree. Every non-alum that I know who attends games love the grass hill.

[ALEX LIFESON]

Shaking my head at the small time thinkers, that cannot see the big picture.

[dalpony]

You are absolutely right Alex

[mtrout]

South endzone is purely for recruiting and to look like we're committed to winning. If Jank can win the portal, surely football can continue to.

[CBpony]

What’s the big picture! This will only work if we get pulled into a bigger conference. Our fan base and those of our opponents will not even come close to filling this. We would need about 4 or 5 successive seasons of 10+ wins maybe more to generate the fan base needed to even come close to not making this place look like an open air morgue. The grassy knoll is a nice feature to this stadium and looks good on TV. Recruits aren’t going to care about a bowler in stadium. A football operations center, maybe.

[digman52]

It looks like most of those endzone seats are in new Boxes, and or premium seating. I would think that there is some interest in new venues, as the older boxes seem to be used fairly well.

[Water Pony]

From the press release, the school is promoting these additions:

"The new 192,500-square-foot Garry Weber End Zone Complex will anchor Ford Stadium's south bowl, connecting its existing east and west gate entries. Team-focused spaces will include new locker rooms, a weight room, position-specific meeting rooms, a full-team auditorium, and a full kitchen and training table to support all of SMU's 484 student-athletes. The new facility will also house football coaches, support staff and video and recruiting services.

The newly constructed concourse will offer more premium experiences for fans, expand guest facilities, improve pedestrian accessibility and add a breezeway that joins the stadium's entryways to the internal field"

Although Ford Stadium will have some increased capacity, it appears that is the smallest benefit compared to the greatly expanded Football Operations Building and Student-Athlete amenities and facilities.

The open horseshoe is nice, but the above will likely appeal to players and recruits. Plus, by enclosing the South End, the atmosphere will feel more intimate and perhaps noisier.

[smubrooks]

I’ll miss the grassy knoll as much as anyone, but the expansion was inevitable. I’d have preferred a operations building elsewhere and maintaining the horseshoe, yet I’m sure our stadium size is a P5 prerequisite. I know we love to hate on those in charge, yet I assume we were told what we need to do for P5(b12) inclusion…

Hope that 5 star Bama RB signs Wednesday!!!

[dalpony]

It will be this summer if in fact he comes - too late to enroll transfers are not committed until they enroll in school - just like Shane - came in June