The push for a $105 million Baylor University basketball facility on the banks of the Brazos River has kicked off with a lead donation, Athletic Director Mack Rhoades announced Tuesday.
The funding comes from a portion of the $100 million anonymous gift to the $1.1 billion Give Light campaign announced Saturday, the largest in the university’s history. The gift also provides a matching contribution for 17 new endowed academic chairs, which will cost $3 million each, for a total of $51 million.
Baylor officials said they will continue to raise about $30 million for the facility, which does not yet have a construction timeline.
With 7,000 to 7,500 seats, the Baylor Basketball Pavilion would become the new home of the Baylor men’s and women’s basketball teams. Their current home, the Ferrell Center, would be renovated for an additional $20 million as a facility for acrobatics, volleyball and tumbling.
The new pavilion, located between the Ferrell Center and the Baylor Ballpark, would include a “state of the art” practice facility with separate locker rooms, practice gyms, team lounges and office suites.
“This gift is symbolic of our united effort to raise the bar across all of our sports,” Rhoades said. “While the Ferrell Center has been home of our men and women’s basketball programs for over 30 years, this project will now create additional opportunities beyond basketball.”
Head basketball Coach Scott Drew called the project “a game-changer for our program.”
“There’s nothing more impactful than a new arena, especially one that brings fans closer to the action,” he said.
— WACOTRIB