BC finally announces facilities improvements

The long, long promised sports facilities improvements finally saw the light of day. BC announced a $200 million dollar project for a new recreation center, new baseball/softball complex and the field house a.k.a. the Indoor Practice Facility. The timing off it all is interesting and certainly prompted some cynicism from frustrated fans, but overall this is good news.

The Money
While all the money is yet to be raised, enough of it has been committed to go forward with the projects. That's a big deal since that eliminates one big hurdle.

The Field House
BC was the lone ACC school without an Indoor Practice Facility. Something had to be done and now we have a step forward. Addazio can sell this on the recruiting trail and we can pump it up to the press. The lingering question mark is when the facility will actually break ground. As with all building projects in Boston, this will require plenty of hoops to jump through. The hope is that by going public, having the money and keeping it well within BC's current athletic footprint, it can move fast. Bates is going to owe football fans and recruits a true timeline on this soon.

Baseball has a future
The actual baseball component of this complex was announced years ago, but sat in limbo for a variety of reasons. The good news is that this announcement means the school is committed to having a baseball team for the near future.

The new recreation center
Every BC student of the last 25 years has heard that the Plex is going away. Like the Mods, the old building kept surviving. Now it seems like there is finally the funds and the willingness to modernize the recreational options. This won't impact the major sports, but will improve the day to day of the normal BC student.

Bates still needs a plan for Conte and to show that he can get this from renderings to actual ground breaking, but I am happy that there is finally some progress.

Addazio takes Indoor Practice Facility push to Media

The Globe and BC's own web site both had write ups on Saturday's scrimmage. Both had quotes from Addazio. BC's piece had more quotes from the coach, but left out an important one that the Globe included: "We need a permanent indoor facility." 

Addazio's push for an permanent indoor practice facility is not new to those who have heard him speak lately. He tends to work it into his speeches at booster and alumni functions. Taking it to the media though changes the objective. Now the pitch goes from receptive ears to a broader community who can interpret it a few different ways. In general, I think BC fans (the passionate and the casual) will support the facility. It is just part of the arms race of college football. And the facilities are no longer just at football factories. Private schools across the ACC have them or are building them. Good facilities can make a difference with quality recruits. But Addazio's quote will also be fuel for those who don't want it (locals who object to any BC construction) and those we recruit against.

I don't think Addazio talked about the facility to put pressure on Brad Bates or start building excuses for himself. It is still early in his tenure, but I don't think he is that manipulative. But taking the message to a wider audience is a power play. Addazio is very friendly with Vega. If he didn't want the quote out there, it would have been removed. Now, Addazio is letting the BC broader BC community know that if we want to compete we need to raise the money and build this facility.