The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/575020
THE BUSINESS OF MICHIGAN ATHLETICS in every way possible, Hackett gives Brandon plenty of credit when it comes to rebuilding U-M facilities. "He was way ahead of his time in a world where there is a bit of an arms race in athletic facilities," Hackett said. "Dave came in a cycle where noth- ing had really been done for 50 years. We had to get all of this done. He did a marvelous job of raising all the money and building what I call really well thought-out architecture and how it all works together. We're just executing the early phases of that." The work for some major projects, including the $226-million Michigan Stadium renovation, occurred under former Athletic Director Bill Martin's guidance. Brandon enhanced the ef- fort, and Michigan produced a mas- ter plan to overhaul a host of athletics facilities. In addition to extensive work be- ing done now on the South Athletic Campus, a new ice plant added at Yost Ice Arena this summer and a new clubhouse for the University of Michigan Golf Course coming soon, Michigan will focus on other needs in short order, Hackett said. At Schembechler Hall, he noted, "We're going to attack the weight room and some of the training parts inside, since Coach [Harbaugh] has arrived. We're working on a plan for that. "We need more indoor space for our other sports. It's just the nature of the part of the world we live in. We need more indoor space, because of the inclement weather, for teams to practice." The master plan will still be fol- lowed, Hackett noted, although the timing isn't set in stone. "The president and the CFO and I spent a lot of time thinking about the sequencing of things," he noted. "If there is any twist, it isn't whether we're going to do it or not. It's just when. It might take a little longer to get some of these things done." What he's gotten done already fig- ures to ensure other projects down the road. ❏ AD Jim Hackett said the football team's w e i g h t r o o m a n d t r a i n i n g a r e a s a t Schembechler Hall could be next on Michigan's priority list for renovations. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL