— By Bill Cornwell
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — The Marshall University Board of Governors and its Athletic Committee got an update Wednesday of future planned facilities for MU Athletics, in addition to work already complete or nearing completion.
The facility plan will be financed by both private and public monies and involves all current sports at Marshall as well as one possible future addition.
The biggest construction project already underway is a new Baseball Stadium north of 3rd Avenue in Huntington near the Ohio River. Structural components of the project, such as dugouts, a visitor’s clubhouse and hitting cage, can now be seen. Total project cost is nearly $28 million, and officials hope to have it ready for the Herd’s baseball season in March 2024.
Some recent architectural drawings for the baseball facility show single-level seating from first to third bases backed by a structure containing concessions, a plaza area, suites and media accommodations.
There are also plans for outfield suites in a stadium with an expected capacity of approximately 3,000.
Also:
- The development of a new Marshall basketball practice facility in Gullickson Hall has been completed, thanks to private contributors.
- The golf team is in the process of receiving some facility upgrades through development of an indoor hitting area and improvements to competition facilities at Guyan Golf and Country Club.
- Around $5 million in video board upgrades are coming to Joan C. Edwards Stadium, the Hoops Family Soccer Complex and the Dot Hicks Softball Complex. The most noticeable video change is installation of a new large video board for football games, work which should begin some time next month.
- Other planned facility upgrades for next year include development of a $3 million sand volleyball complex on the MU campus and improvements to weight training and training table facilities. Marshall Athletic Director Christian Spears says beach volleyball could be added as a varsity sport in the near future as it is now offered as a championship sport in the Sun Belt Conference.
- Other big-ticket items for future consideration are construction of an outdoor track at a cost of $5 million and $6 million in possible upgrades to the Hoops Family Soccer Complex including a boost in seating.
- In the near future, Spears said Marshall may build an indoor tennis complex on or near campus. The MU women’s tennis team now hosts matches in an outdoor tennis area on campus and indoors at a tennis facility in the Barboursville area.
- Besides building the baseball stadium, the largest future project for MU Athletics is a restructuring of the south end zone at Joan C. Edwards Stadium. The proposed $25 million project would see the elimination of the existing metal bleachers in the south end zone and construction of a new fan zone open to seat holders in the east and west stands of the stadium. The reimagined south end zone would include suites and party areas as well as standing areas to watch football games. The entire south end zone project is now slated for completion in 2027. Another possible boost for Herd football is consideration of developing an outdoor practice field east of the Chris Cline Athletic Center, which is Marshall football’s indoor practice home.