Middle Tennessee Breaks Ground on Student-Athlete Performance Center

Middle Tennessee State University broke ground on the Athletic Department’s new $66 million Student-Athlete Performance Center Thursday, Jan. 26, on the site of the project just outside of Johnny “Red” Floyd Stadium.

The three-story, 85,500-square-foot building connected to the north end of Floyd Stadium will serve as the new home of Blue Raider Football, as well as contain a variety of facilities vital for the continued support of all MTSU student-athletes, including new athletic training, weightlifting and nutrition areas.

“Once completed, this new facility, along with an enhanced Murphy Center, will be part of a new gateway into our campus and will stand as a visible reminder of our commitment to athletic success,” said President Sidney A. McPhee. “Today’s groundbreaking publicly reaffirms our commitment to maintaining a nationally competitive athletic program.”

McPhee was joined by Board of Trustees Chair Stephen B. Smith, Director of Athletics Chris Massaro, Head Football Coach Rick Stockstill, Women’s Golf Coach Chris Adams, student-athletes, supporters, and fans from around the MTSU community for the groundbreaking, which was held prior to that night’s women’s basketball game against Florida Atlantic in Murphy Center.

“Today marks the latest milestone in a project that countless Blue Raiders have worked on and dreamed of for many years,” said Massaro. “The Student-Athlete Performance Center is transformational for our department, the University, and for our community. We will be able to better develop our players, attract top-notch recruits, and make our student-athlete experience second to none.”

Fresh off the football program’s first ever back-to-back bowl wins, Stockstill expressed appreciation for the continued support of Blue Raider fans that is helping take MTSU Football to the next level with the start of construction later this winter.

“This new center will help Middle Tennessee Football compete at the highest level on the field,” Stockstill said. “With the upgraded facilities, so many new doors will be opened for the Blue Raiders to continue to build off of the legacy of our past players and coaches.”

When completed, the SAPC will feature three floors of amenities, starting on the first floor, where the Tommy and Judy Smith Entry Lobby will greet visitors to the building. Housed on the first floor will be state-of-the-art facilities, including a nutrition station, a strength and conditioning room and an athletic training room equipped with hydrotherapy pools. The first floor will also be the new home for the Blue Raider football team, as it will house the new football locker room and player’s lounge, in addition to the new equipment room.

The second floor will house the offices of the Blue Raider Football coaching staff, with a plethora of meeting areas, including the team meeting room, position rooms and coaches meeting rooms.

The third floor will also feature a large dining venue for student-athletes. On gameday this space will be dedicated to premium opportunities for fans.

The SAPC project, made possible through the support of Blue Raider fans in the Build Blue campaign, will also provide updates to the south endzone videoboard in Floyd Stadium, as well as the videoboards inside of Murphy Center. A control room, giving MTSU the ability to produce their own live television broadcasts at the industry standard, will also be constructed within Murphy Center.

Goodwyn Mills Cawood Inc. (GMC) and HOK, a team that helped build similar projects at Vanderbilt, Auburn, Georgia and other universities, is overseeing the design of the project. General contracting for the construction of the SAPC will be done by The Parent Company Inc. out of Brentwood, Tennessee.

Those interested in pursuing naming rights within the Student-Athlete Performance Center are encouraged to contact Hans Malebranche, associate AD for development and chief development officer, at hans.malebranche@mtsu.edu.