Meeting Outlines Athletics’ Future
Harrison Hohman – News Editor
January
29, Athletic Director, Jon Borer held a meeting which made the department’s
long term plans public and enlightened the attendees regarding the future of
Mount Michael football, soccer and athletics as a whole. Several members of the
Project Home Field Advantage committee were in attendance including facilities
director Jim Lewis, head soccer coach Kevin Grey and head of school Dr. David Peters.
Borer described the plans for advancing the school’s athletic facilities to
roughly 25 interested parents, coaches and benefactors.
After
welcoming the attendees, Borer began the presentation with a video he made of
students and administration giving their reasons for why they wanted a new
sports field. Many of the students’ responses echoed one another, each claiming
that the new field would be a massive boost to the players morale, all of whom
have never played a game at “home,” or “under the lights.” Administrators, meanwhile,
spoke about the recruiting advantage a new stadium would bring: nicer facilities,
more people visiting the campus, and a sense of growth, potentially bringing
more students to Mount Michael.
Phase
II, which has yet to be completed, will allow Mount Michael to play host to
varsity football games by adding sidewalks, bleachers, fencing, a scoreboard
and a new sound system. This phase will cost roughly $136,000, although over
$31,000 of this has already been raised.
Phase
III will allow Mount Michael’s teams to play home games at night by adding a
new lighting system, estimates for which have been around $74,500.
The
first three of the four total phases could be completed in the next few years.
However, the fourth and final phase may take decades to be realized.
This
final step, also the final part of the capital campaign, involves building an entirely
new football stadium east of the current school, returning the soccer field to
its original purpose.
One
audience member was curious why the plan didn’t include artificial turf, and why
money was being spent on two fields. Borer explained that the costs of turf
ruled out an artificial field, and due to wear and tear, it would be impossible
to permanently host both football and soccer on the same grass field.
To
conclude the meeting, Borer issued an ultimatum: if enough money can be raised
for phase II by March 1, Mount Michael will host its first ever home football
games next fall, While night games ‘under the lights’ won’t be a reality next
fall, making Phase II happen would be a step forward for a school that has
never played a varsity football game at its true “home.”
Mount Michael Initiates Upgrade of
Athletic Facilities
Oliver Jarosik – Staff Writer
Picture
this: You’ve been practicing for months. Through the two-a-days, hours of lifting,
and rigorous studying of the playbook day in and day out, you’ve endured. It’s
finally game day and you’re ready to make your school proud. After a good pep
talk from the coach, you hit the field. And it’s at this moment, as the Friday
night lights hit your face, you realize that it’s great to be a Knight.
It’s
a feeling that some Knights have dreamt of for a long time, running on to their
own home fi eld. Mount Michael has never been able to hold their own home football
games at the school due to the lack of stands and lighting. For the past three
decades, the home games have been played at Elkhorn Middle School. Also, the
Mount has to pay a fee every season in order to play there. It’s nice that the middle
school is decently close to the school, but it’s still an inconvenience.
However,
recently there have been rumors going around about the athletic department
getting money to have lights and stands installed at the field on campus. On January
10, Athletic Director and football coach, Jon Borer, met with the booster club
to explore the idea of putting in lights on the football and soccer field. According
to Borer the idea was well received and there is a possibility that Mount
Michael will be able to host its own first home game next year.
“There
are many benefits to having your own field,” says Borer. “We won’t have to pay
rent to Elkhorn Middle School, concessions will bring in a ton of revenue, and
overall there’s nothing like playing on your own home field.” Many other students
and faculty believe that bringing the home games home will increase popularity
for the school and increase moral for the football team. “Anytime we improve our
athletic facilities it will benefit the school and the students,” says assistant
football coach Matt Luettel.
In
addition to improving the field, the athletic department is already underway on
a new weight room facility.
This
past fall, construction crews began work on a new garage for the monastic community
so that the older garage could be converted into a bigger weight room. As of
right now, the new garage is completed and the new weight room is filled with
unassembled new equipment. “We have a ton of new machines that are laying in
pieces in the new weight room. There’s about $200,000 of equipment that was
donated.” The new weight room will be open to students when the weather starts
getting warmer. Open times are still being discussed by the deans and coaches.
Overall,
this year can be summed up as the ‘Year of Athletics.’ The many advancements
that have been done should help the Knights improve athletically. Perhaps in a
few short years Mount Michael athletics will match its academic achievements.
