On a number of occasions, I have mentioned a pressing need to upgrade our facilities. Over the past five years, we have made close to $6 million in improvements, but we still need more. Obviously, our upgrades have been tied to available financial resources. Most of our efforts to this regard come from private fund raising. At present, we have three facilities undergoing major upgrades and have sent appeals to fans, former athletes and alumni to provide financial support.

Strength and Conditioning Center---This is a very important facility for our entire program. The facility is undergoing a complete makeover with updated equipment, etc.. The cost for the project is just over $500,000. Thus far we have raised near $400,000. Contributions are still needed in order to complete the entire project. The modernizing this facility will aid us not only in training current athletes but will also be a significantly positive factor for recruiting high-caliber student-athletes for all of our sports.

Baseball Scoreboard/Video Board---This has been very much needed for a number of years in order to be competitive with other programs. The cost of this initiative is $600,000. To date we have raised just over $300,000. While the board will be up and running within the next two weeks we still have need of –an additional. 300K from private support in order to cover the cost. Come out to the games and take a look---you will be impressed and find it to be a real enhancement for watching the Coogs.

Softball Scoreboard-----This too has been a much needed addition to our softball facility. The cost for this project is $42,000 with just over $24,000 raised to date. This board is up and in use and has been a very positive addition to the facility and program.

We are still raising money for all three of these projects and will continue to seek financial support from our alums.

Looking towards the future, we have had assessments done on both Robertson Stadium and Hofheinz Pavilion. Without going into great detail, the cost for improvements involve very significant dollar amounts. Through our contact with a number of potential donors, we have yet to have a response that would qualify as a 'lead' gift which would allow us to get a project, such as an endzone facility, underway immediately. We are poised to begin such a project and believe that it will be part of a campus-wide capital campaign announced publicly soon. However, athletics will still bear the primary burden for fundraising.

In order to catch up and be a real factor in Division I athletics, private support must be increased. The university has been doing what it can to help us with operational costs. Because our emphasis on philanthropy and convincing alums to give back and support the program is really in its very early stages, development dollars compared to other universities of like size has lagged. That is changing, more dollars are being raised every year and our alums have a greater understanding that we must rely more on private giving if we are to support the current program and to achieve the success we all desire.

No gift is too large or too small. In order to make a contribution today go online to www.UHCougars.com or call the Cougar Pride office at 713-743-9450 in order to make a gift to your athletic program.  

Dave Maggard