By Marc Coburn
From the desk of: Andrea Emmons
Athletic facilities include the stadium, weight room, training room, academic help for sports and absolutely everything that is talked about in terms of athletics. How much of a factor should athletic facilities play in your college decision?
With the athletic facilities encompassing a large part of your life the next four years it is important that you feel comfortable with your surroundings. It is also important to know whether or not any renovations will take place during your four or five years at the college or university. If this is the case find out if there is a set completion date. If not, you may then be skeptical that the program is just using the renovation plan as a recruiting ploy without follow through. Many college coaches use these tactics as a part of their recruiting strategy while all along knowing decisions are only in the preliminary stages and may not occur for years, or at all. Keep in mind that sketches are only sketches and that final plans can change dramatically due to cost, time and other sometimes political matters.
Touring the athletic facilities will also show you how much emphasis is put on spots at that school. For example, if one Division III college recently put a 30 million dollar addition on while another college in the same has not upgraded their equipment since the seventies, who would you imagine has more of an athletic focus at their institution?
Before most athletes make a decision they take multiple trips to the school. While on those unofficial visits, try to see as much of the athletic facilities as you can. Check out the athletic or sport specific weight room and see what the indoor and the outdoor tracks are like. Do you get a good feeling and can you imagine it during competition with spectators? Chances are, at some point during your college career you will need to see the training room. Is it state of the art? Do they have a lot of whirl pools? How do they help you with rehab? Do they have good trainers? These are the types of questions that you must consider when trying to get a feel for athletic facilities.
While a visit is the only true way to see all the facilities a college can offer, and should always be taken before making a final decision, you may be able to evaluate the campus beforehand. Most colleges have pictures and descriptions of their facilities online. Look for college programs to really market their facilities online if there have been recent upgrades and new facilities added. Again, while this should never be used in place of a visit and seeing the real thing up close, if the school is far away this may be your best option.
Keep in mind that large DI state programs aren’t the only ones that have outstanding facilities and spend a lot of money. Many smaller institutions have endowments that far exceed state programs. These total endowments can be in the multi million to multi billion dollar range per year. How do you think buildings and facilities get their names? While athletic facilities shouldn’t be your only factor, or even your first factor in making a college decision, it needs to be considered and researched to make sure you’re choosing the right program for the next four years to come.
