It’s basketball season in Indiana, and that is more than enough to have the Hoosier faithful excited, but this year there is another reason for fans and alumni to be excited. Indiana recently completed a $40 million renovation to its historic basketball home.
Thanks, in large part to a $40 million gift from Cindy Simon Skjodt, Indiana was able to overhaul the newly renamed Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, keeping some of the most historical features of the building while adding much-needed comforts. Preserving the history of the building was the main focus point for Indiana athletic director Fred Glass. (shown above)
“What we are trying to do is to preserve our character because Assembly Hall is a unique place, Glass told College AD, “We thought that it was important to kind of do it our way. What we tried to do is to try to preserve the best home court advantage in college basketball which means not doing a lot in the bowl, which means investing a lot in infrastructure, but adding fan amenities and technology that make it a viable arena for the next 43 years.”
The Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall project is part of a larger facilities plan that includes a student-athlete development program facility which will close in the south end zone of Memorial Stadium, a brand-new arena for volleyball and wrestling, rebuilding the golf course, and renovate the soccer facility, Armstrong Stadium.
#TheTraditionContinues https://t.co/rlJ1YtiU9m
— Indiana Basketball (@IndianaMBB) October 14, 2016
Indiana is in the midst of a massive campaign campus-wide as part of IU’s bicentennial in 2020. The university has a goal of raising $2.5 billion and athletics is responsible for $170 million of that. The Hoosier athletic department plans to raise $85 million in capital projects and $85 million in scholarships.
As part of the renovations, Indiana added 82 new premium seating options in Indiana’s Spirt of 76 Club, named after the famed 1976 national championship team. The seats, which will be sold in pairs, will cost $25,000 annually for the rights to purchase tickets. Each ticket will cost roughly $1,500. The additional premium inventory, adds significant revenue and that revenue will be used to fund scholarships Glass said. In addition to the seats, members of the Spirt of 76 Club will have access to a larger suite that will have upscale tables, food, and beverages.
Renovations also include new concession stands, greater food choices for fans, and the incorporation of local favorites.
In addition to upgrading the seating, looks, and amenities of Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Indiana added a brand new $5 million media and technology center to the west side of the building. The Mark Cuban Center for Sports Media and Technology, named after IU alum and man responsible for the $5 million gift, will bring state of the art technology to Indiana.
Checking out our new home in #SSAH. Can't wait to move in! pic.twitter.com/SKGJDSv08N
— Cuban Center (@CubanCenter) October 14, 2016
The facility which will house cutting-edge equipment, including FreeD technology, will be run completely by undergraduates at Indiana. The students will have 24-hour access to the Cuban Center for Sports Media and Technology. The center will also be home to an ORAD virtual studio, a completely green-screened studio. The entire set is built graphically, it is a small space, but you can create it whatever background you want. This will allow students to shoot different segments to be used throughout games for things such as national score updates or promotional events.
“We have an official partnership with our media school,” said Jeremy Gray (shown left), IU’s Associate AD for Strategic Communications and Fan Experience. “We also have one with the school of informatics and computing, so what we are wanting to do is kind of merry students from a variety of disciplines.”
“Students that are studying graphic design might do animation for our videos, but those who want to be filmmakers might do recruiting or hype videos for us or even create the team’s intro video for us. But we have also engaged the people who like live television as either broadcasters or crew” Gray added.
The center will now allow IU to stream all Hoosier home games with state of the art technology. Students will work on 200 or so home events each year.
Glass noted that for Cuban, investing it technology is how the NBA owner prefers to spend his money, telling College AD “The motherload of his money went into actually acquiring the technology like the freeD 360-degree replay technology, the Orad virtual reality studio. That’s how he wanted it.”
Thanks to two generous gifts as part of a historical capital campaign, Indiana was able to preserve the historical features of one of the most unique venues in all of college basketball while adding modern amenities, and introduce a world class facility in which students will be able to gain invaluable training and experience that they can apply in the real world.
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