Taking Aggie Athletics to New Heights

While often looked at as one of the little guys in a conference Utah State University can boast one area in which it can compete with the “big boys” of college athletics. 

The completion of the new Jim and Carol Laub Athletics-Academics Complex, at the south end of Romney Stadium, gives USU student-athletes and coaches access to top-notch training equipment, locker rooms, digital technology and academic resources.

Although the facility has been in full use for less than a month, its effects have already been felt.

“It’s such a great teaching tool in all facets because we have the ability to teach football in our classrooms,” said head football coach Brent Guy.  “Every room is enhanced by a computer and  has digital capabilities, allowing the players to break down film just like coaches break it down – by down and distance, by personnel, by the type of blitz or anything they want to do. Even our snappers and kickers have a room they can go in and watch plays every day, which is something we’ve never had the ability to do.”

The three-story complex has a number of features that benefit USU student-athletes of all sports. The first floor is home to locker rooms for the football, women’s track and field, softball and women’s soccer teams. It also hosts the Steve Mothersell Hall of Fame, named after the former Aggie tight end who made a sizeable donation to the project.

Spacious offices and conference rooms are located on the second floor, which Guy said have helped prepare his team this season.

“Being right above the locker room is convenient,” he said. “It gives me the ability to have a team meeting every day where I can talk and show film and then meet individually with them in different rooms.”

The third floor contains the academic center, which is equipped with classrooms, computer labs and tutoring areas that help student-athletes perform well in the classroom.

 

“The added bonus is having the academic center on the third level so athletes can go up and study and get their work done during the day,” Guy said.  “In the past, we didn’t have a study hall area.  We now have it all during the day, which is more convenient for not just football, but all of our athletes.”

The facility also hosts the 11,000-square-foot Dale Mildenberger Sports Medicine Complex, the Dr. John Worley Sports Medicine Research Center and a 7,000-square-foot equipment room.

For athletes such as senior offensive lineman Derek Hoke, who experienced the outdated facilities at the school for most of his career, the new building has been a night-and-day difference.

“It’s extremely nice, even just for morale,” Hoke said. “It helps you to feel a little more important, that things are going the right way and that things are improving. It’s been a great help, and it’s made football a lot easier and a lot more fun at times.”

On top of helping athletes reach their full potential on the field and in the classroom, the facility is also a way to attract and recruit top student-athletes to the school. Guy said that with the new facility in place, he’s excited to walk students through and show them what the school has to offer.

“It’s a great recruiting tool,” he said. “We’ll walk parents and recruits through and set them in the classroom they’re going to be in, set them in the meeting rooms, the coaching offices and show them the academic center. It’s going to be an added bonus this year.”

Completion of the facility was boosted by donations from more than 400 Aggie alumni and friends of the program, Including 120 former student-athletes. These donors reflect a commitment to USU athletics that manifests itself today in a structure that will benefit athletes for season to come. It’s a place where Aggie student-athletes will be able to take advantage of the state-of-the-art facilities and take Aggie athletics to new heights.

 

 Writer: Dave Archer, 435-797-3714