The University of Massachusetts (UMass) has completed the construction of a new indoor training facility for its football and athletics programs.
Built behind the west bleachers of the school’s McGuirk Alumni Stadium, the new 96,000ft2 field and structure is part of a wider renovation project to enhance the venue which includes new restrooms, ADA upgrades, a new state of the art video and auxiliary board, and a new hospitality plaza behind the south end zone, all of which opened in the fall of 2019.
The training facility is an air-supported structure with a material covering inflated and held in form thanks to internal pressurized air. The indoor structure, built over the field, provides the athletic department and campus recreation the ability to work indoors during inclement weather and winter seasons. The turf practice field will benefit UMass’s entire athletic department and its student-athletes, along with intramural and club sports.
The construction was made possible as a result of a US$5.58m donation from Marty Jacobson, who graduated from the school in 1968. Jacobson and his brother Richard previously donated US$2.5m in 2013 to construct the new press box at McGuirk Alumni Stadium.
