Practice makes perfect
Indoor football facility another step in the amenities arms race
Hunter Yurachek is admittedly biased when it comes to describing the latest addition to the athletic department’s portfolio of new facilities at the University of Houston. “I think this is the nicest in the country,” Yurachek, the vice president of intercollegiate athletics, said recently as he stood near midfield at UH’s $20 million indoor football practice facility. UH used the facility for the first time last week, a “big step” in closing the gap with the so-called Power Five conference schools, coach Major Applewhite said.
All the bells and whistles
The 80,000-square foot, football-specific facility comes with just about everything you would expect — a high-tech video board, seven remote-controlled cameras to catch practice from every angle and a 120-yard synthetic playing surface. There is an additional 25,000 square feet that can be used for offensive and defensive line breakout drills.
A translucent panel allows for sun to come into the facility without the glare. To maximize cooling, the air conditioning system is designed to cool 20 feet and below.
Large UH graphics greet visitors as they walk into the lobby, just a few steps from the northwest tunnel at TDECU Stadium, and a row of banners that highlight the program’s history hang along the exterior.
The south side features huge red block letters that spell “Houston” and a UH logo that illuminates at night.
“It’s the most functional and technologically advanced practice facility, and it’s going to be a huge recruiting tool and competitive advantage for our football program moving forward,” Yurachek said.
The project was entirely funded through private donations from 20 donors, who are recognized with a wall plaque at every yard marker. The field is named for the Gutierrez family. One end zone is named for Fred Haas, a longtime university supporter and local businessman, and the other end zone is named for the Slaughter family. There are talks about a possible naming-rights deal for the facility.
Admittedly late to the facilities arms race in college football, UH has quickly closed the gap in recent years with the opening of the 40,000-seat TDECU Stadium and indoor facility all within the last three-plus years.
“It’s another step, and it’s a big step, in getting on that level playing field with some of the ‘bigger conferences and bigger schools,’” Applewhite said.
It also provides a convenient alternative for the Cougars, who currently practice on two outdoor fields. An indoor facility allows the Cougars a retreat from the heat during August preseason camp and from inclement weather. In the past, the Cougars had to rent busses and pay a fee to the NFL’s Texans to occasionally use their practice bubble.
“There’s such a focus right now on student-athlete time demands. The time demands of having to put young men onto a bus and bus them through Houston traffic over to the Texans bubble — they’ve been unbelievable partners to us — but it’s just not convenient. It impacts our academic pursuits,” Yurachek said.
“This is just a convenience
for us. We can come in whether we have inclement weather, hot weather or if coach (Applewhite) just wants to practice on the turf and really treat the student-athletes to a great experience.”
‘Commitment to winning’
Applewhite said the facility will be among the selling points for recruits that visit campus.
“(It) shows the prospects that there’s a commitment to winning and playing for championships here,” said Applewhite, whose team plays at Tulane on Saturday. “I feel just blessed to be the head coach that gets to take the team in there and use that facility.”
The indoor facility is the latest in upgrades UH has made as part of $230 million in capital projects and renovations in recent years. The basketball programs opened the Guy V. Lewis Development Center in 2016 and will debut the Fertitta Center next November, a 20,000-square foot baseball development center should be ready this spring, softball announced plans for an indoor practice facility earlier this month and a new track surface and soccer field were installed at the Carl Lewis Track & Field and Soccer Complex.
“Just a steady commitment to a lot of sports from the athletic department,” Applewhite said.
As he walked into the new facility, senior inside linebacker D’Juan Hines called it “big-time football.”
And it’s a big step to closing the gap in the never-ending, whathave-you-built-lately world of college athletics.