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Purdue to receive $60 million upgrade to football training facilities

Connor O'Gara

By Connor O'Gara

Published:

The arms race in the B1G continues.

Purdue announced on Wednesday that it’ll be spending $60 million on an upgrade to the Mollenkopf Center, which is the training facility for the football team. The deal is pending Board of Trustees approval in December.

The overhaul will consist of a 110,000-square foot addition to the Mollenkopf Center at the north end and would centralize the football staff to one building. The proposed deal would make the Purdue Football Performance Complex a three-story facility with new locker rooms, workout equipment, coaching offices, film rooms, study areas and lounging areas for players.

It would be the program’s first major training facilities update in over 25 years.

The revenue for the project will come from revenue from the Big Ten Network, and donations, most notably from a certain former Purdue quarterback. Drew Brees’ $1 million donation is something Purdue President Mitch Daniels said would be considered “the first installment.”

If the project is approved in December, it would break ground by May of 2016 and be completed the start of the 2017 season. The upgrade would be a major boost for a Purdue program that ranks near the bottom of the conference in facilities.

Minnesota announced earlier in the month that it would be undergoing a $166 million renovation plan for its entire athletic facilities.

Perhaps an upgrade will help Purdue improve on its one B1G win in the last three seasons.

Connor O'Gara

Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Tradition. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.