“It’s pretty evident around the country that athletics is the front porch to every university and the Southeastern Conference. We, just like all of our brothers in the SEC, continue to work to upgrade the facilities that are needed to provide our student-athletes in their respective sports with a first class experience during their college period.”
South Carolina head men’s basketball coach Frank Martin.
For more information on this project and the Garnet Society, please contact Steve Eigenbrot at 803.777.8116 or eigenbrot@sc.edu
South Carolina men’s and women’s basketball are back in the national spotlight for what they are achieving on the court. The Carolina Coliseum Project ensures that the efforts on the basketball floor are being matched by necessary facilities off the court to help both programs adequately prepare to compete and also attract future generations of Gamecock student-athletes.
“It’s pretty evident around the country that athletics is the front porch to every university and the Southeastern Conference,” said South Carolina men’s basketball coach Frank Martin. “We, just like all of our brothers in the SEC, continue to work to upgrade the facilities that are needed to provide our student-athletes in their respective sports with a first class experience during their college period.”
“Our team will benefit from the new facility by competing with the rest of the SEC,” said South Carolina women’s basketball head coach Dawn Staley. “When we go around to different campuses, what we see is a lot different than what we have on campus. This is state of the art. It has a ‘wow’ factor. It will definitely attract recruits, their parents, and when we have visitors and other coaches here. They want to know what a Final Four program looks like behind the scenes. So we’ll create an environment where people will want to strive to be like South Carolina. We don’t have that right now. We are in a position now where our winning should be both on and off the court.”
“This facility will allow us to win in recruiting. It will allow us to attract recruits from all over the country.”
South Carolina head women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley.
Coaches agree that facilities are not only and integral part of helping student-athletes reach their potential, but also a huge factor in attracting the best and the brightest recruits.
“This facility will allows us to win in recruiting,” Staley said. “It will allow us to attract recruits from all over the country.”
“These facilities also become tremendous recruiting advantages for the average student, not just student-athletes,” Martin said. “It’s all part of that campus experience and a first class university.”
“When I as a recruit, the two top things I was worried about was the gear and the facilities,” said junior A’ja Wilson. “They want the best facilities. As we continue to improve the facilities that we have here, I think we’ll bring in the top players, and that’s what we need to carry on the success and the legacy of South Carolina.”
The Carolina Coliseum Project converts underutilized space in the historic building into a hub for all basketball operations and activities outside of game day. With an anticipated completion date set for spring of 2017, the Carolina Coliseum Project provides a convenient, central location for locker rooms, athletic training room, weight room and coaches’ offices.
“Just having all of this is going to be better for (student-athletes),” said former Gamecock All-American Tiffany Mitchell. “We spend so much time on the court, with weights, and in the film room. So having all of that in one building will definitely be convenient and make the experience as student-athletes that much better.”
“It will allow our players to have a safe environment, where only they would have access to it,” Staley added. “It’s right across the street from the dorms, so it’s a short walk for them to access the facility 24 hours per day. It will create a safe environment where they know that once they enter this building, it’s a safe haven for them.”
As South Carolina’s basketball programs continue to grow on the court, it is paramount that facilities keep pace with those efforts.
“We want to recruit great recruits, and we want to create a great student-athlete experience with our current players,” Staley said. “They deserve great facilities for how much they sacrifice for our program.”