Columbia, Mo. – The University of Missouri Board of Curators gave unanimous final approval Wednesday for the construction of a new $33.1M indoor football practice facility that will be funded through private donations and scheduled to be completed by December 2022. Construction on the new facility, which will be located adjacent to the Tigers’ South End Zone Complex, will begin later this fall.
“We are grateful for the donors who have stepped forward with transformational gifts in support of this significant project that will benefit not only Mizzou Football, but several of our other teams, too, in future years no matter the weather in Mid-Missouri,” said Mizzou Director of Athletics Jim Sterk. “We are thankful for the donors who believe in Mizzou and who are committed to helping us achieve excellence throughout our athletics program.
“Mizzou Football enjoys tremendous momentum under Coach (Eliah) Drinkwitz and his staff, and having a convenient, year-around training facility with a full-length football field to practice will help bring Mizzou in line with other SEC programs from a facilities standpoint,” he added. “This is another piece of the puzzle as we work together to fulfill Coach Drinkwitz’ bold vision for our program.”
The new, 86,400-square foot indoor facility will be located adjacent to Mizzou Football’s $98M South End Zone Complex, which opened in August 2019, and includes a full-length football field with appropriate run off distances beyond the end zones and along the sidelines for student-athlete safety. The location will provide a convenient transition for the student-athletes to move from the South End Zone facility to the indoor building. The site will also allow access to an upper mezzanine level, which will provide amenities including a viewing lobby, expanded restrooms for game-day use and VIP premium tailgating opportunities.
“I’m grateful to our Board of Curators and our athletics administration for making our Indoor Practice Facility a reality,” Mizzou Head Coach Eliah Drinkwitz said. “This is an important commitment to our program. An indoor space to train and practice is crucial to our player development efforts.”
Currently, the Devine Pavilion, which opened in 1998, serves as the only indoor practice facility for Mizzou’s Football, Baseball, Softball and Women’s Soccer programs. The surface within the current indoor facility is only 70 yards long, which is problematic for the football program as the SEC’s northernmost school. The new indoor facility will not only provide obvious benefits to the Mizzou Football program, but it will also take the pressure off scheduling for all teams who currently use the Devine Pavilion.
Mizzou Athletics has been working with one of the world’s finest architects, St. Louis-based HOK, and its Kansas City, Mo.-based sports division, HOK-Sport, to develop pre-design programming and planning for the facility. The athletics department provided the Board of Curators with a project scope, budget and fundraising plan per the resolution that was passed Dec. 6, 2020, and received board approval to hire HOK in February 2021.
Commit to the #NewZou, season tickets and renewals for the 2021 Mizzou Football season are now on sale. For more information, visit MUTigers.com/NewZouTix or call 1-800-CAT-PAWS. For all the latest on Mizzou Football, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter (@MizzouFootball) and like the team on Facebook and Instagram.
