Harrisonburg Alumni Breakfast

Wednesday morning, the Harrisonburg Alumni Chapter had a networking breakfast with guests JMU Football Head Coach Mickey Matthews, JMU Director of Athletics Jeff Bourne, and CAA Commissioner Tom Yeager. After a quick viewing of the club seats video for the stadium expansion, the guests answered a list of questions that were submitted. I tried to include as much information in the almost hour-long Q&A as I could, so I'm sorry if it's a little long (or really long).

The first round of questions were directed mainly towards Coach Mickey Matthews. He said regarding the QB situation that Drew Dudzik played "solid." Mickey also said that after looking at the tape, they didn't play Justin Thorpe enough. He was having a decent game, but because of penalties and field position he was at a disadvantage. They also noticed that at times Dudzik struggled in the second half, but that in the very competitive situation, Dudzik was handling the game better. Matthews also commented that they will continue to share playing time and didn't know who would "begin" the game (as opposed to "start", which commands too much attention in his opinion"). He also said that, "The worst thing coaches do is promise playing time."

JMU Football Stadium Expansion

Video

Official JMUSports.com Information

Timeline

• West Stands (Home side) - Lower Deck
  Will begin in Dec. '09 and will be completed before the beginning of the 2010 season.
• West Stands (Home side) - Upper Deck
  Including press box, club room and suites
  Will begin in Dec. '10 and will be completed before the beginning of the 2011 season.
• North Stands (Beneath video scoreboard)
  Will begin after completion of the West Stands Upper Deck and will be completed before the beginning of the 2011 season (a year ahead of schedule).

New Amenities
Will include new concourses, concessions and restrooms. The press box will be relocated to the West Stands. There will be increased stadium lighting. In addition, club level seats/lounge area and suites will be added to Bridgeforth Stadium.

Seat Approximations

• Existing East stands (student and visitor stands): 5,157
  
• Total Lower New: Approximately 12,000
  
• Total Upper New: Approximately 7,000
  

• Total Seats = Approximately 25,000

Cost
Originally estimated at $52 million, the price has dropped due to the current economic situation. $10 million will still come from private donations, while the other $42 million will come from university funding. JMU needs $4 million of the private donations raised at the end of March '09 to hit their "break ground" goal. Right now we have $3.4 million raised, so we need $600k more in about a month and a half. JMU is looking for 5 year commitments, so ideally they want people willing to donate something like $5k over the next 5 years. However, they will take any meaningful commitment you are willing to make. If you are interested, in contributing, please email JMU's Director of Major Gifts, J. Batt, at battjm@jmu.edu.

Current State of the Economy
The cost of the stadium expansion will likely come in 10-20% below the original $52 million estimate. That makes now the perfect time to start the project, even though the school is currently looking at a 15% budget cut. It will be cheaper and this money is coming from a different pot than other University funding and is designeated specifically for the stadium expansion. It will also stimulate the local economy by providing lots of jobs as the destruction and construction takes place. The lowering of the cost means that JMU won't have to raise their student fees as much.

My Pledge
I have decided to pledge 50 cents for each unique visitor I get to the Windbreaker for the month of March. I am hoping that this pledge will inspire others to give what they can. Even if you can't give a lot, every little bit helps.

JMU Master Plan

JMU's comprehensive Master Plan has recently been posted online for public viewing. Remember that this is just a forward looking plan and things could change drastically between now and when this work is done. Also, time frame has not been determined for all buildings yet, so for all this to be done it could take 15 years or it could take 40 years.

In the coming weeks, the Windbreaker will be reviewing each section.