NC State raising new athletics funds for C-F Scoreboard

Link

RALEIGH – Quietly, North Carolina State University is raising as much as $6 million from private donors for improvements to athletic facilities including the school’s football stadium.

“We will be purchasing a new scoreboard for Carter Finley that will be a significant improvement,” writes N.C. State’s athletics director, Debbie Yow, in an e-mail about her plans for the coming year. “Our focus for the Spring will be the pursuit of private funding for a number of modest yet valuable facility improvements …”

Senior Associate Athletics Director Chris Kingston, who is working on the scoreboard project, said through a university spokesman that the project is one of many planned facility enhancements. And the money for those most of improvements will have to come from private donors.

The football stadium’s current scoreboard has been in use since 2001. It was part of a massive, multi-year makeover for the stadium that included adding seats, building a new press box and luxury suites and constructing a football operations center.

Mark Steinkamp, a senior marketing director at Brookings, S.D.-based scoreboard provider Daktronics, says in an e-mail that large college football scoreboards can cost as much as several million dollars. Schools typically will replace them every seven to 10 years as new control and display technologies come along, he adds.

Bobby Purcell, executive director of the Wolfpack Club booster organization, says that NCSU’s plans call for replacing the video screen part of the scoreboard, not the entire scoreboard. “There’s a lot better technology now,” he says in explaining the need for the upgrade.

Replacing only the screen panel would save NCSU money. Experts in the semiconductor industry versed with light emitting diode technology estimate such a replacement would cost between $500,000 and $1 million. That same upgrade would have cost more than $2 million just a couple years ago, but LED prices have fallen dramatically since then.

One booster the university might consider targeting for help with such a project is Neal Hunter, who co-founded the Durham-based LED company Cree Inc. Hunter says that he has heard about the university trying to upgrade its football scoreboard before next season, but no one from the school has approached him officially to talk about it. “I would love to see Cree’s LED in that scoreboard,” he says.

So what about the fundraising for other facility improvements that Yow alludes to in her e-mail? Purcell says that he is working on two projects.

The first, which is almost complete, is raising a half million dollars to upgrade the Casey Natatorium, where the school’s swimming teams compete. The Wolfpack Club also is trying to raise another $2.5 million, which is needed to complete the clubhouse at the school’s golf course. NCSU booster Lonnie Poole already has donated half of the amount needed for that $5 million project. Last week, Poole announced a gift of $40 million to the business school of the university, the single-largest gift by an individual in NCSU’s history.

But for the athletics department, the current list of projects may just be the beginning as Yow plans for the long term. Local real estate veteran Steve Stroud, a well-known NCSU booster, says, “Our soccer facilities are far behind the other major soccer programs in the ACC.” He adds that the tennis facilities and the baseball stadium are among the venues that also need improvements.

About StateFans

'StateFansNation' is the shared profile used by any/all of the dozen or so authors that contribute to the blog. You may not always agree with us, but you will have little doubt about where we stand on most issues. Please follow us on Twitter and FaceBook

NCS Football

38 Responses to NC State raising new athletics funds for C-F Scoreboard

  1. sfpack 02/01/2011 at 9:32 AM #

    Tennis and baseball too? I knew they were doing something to the outside courts at tennis and they just added a new scoreboard at Doak. What else?

    Good lord, Lee. We thought you at least got the facilities part right. Oops.

  2. old13 02/01/2011 at 9:38 AM #

    Indoor FB practice facility?

  3. Wufpacker 02/01/2011 at 9:47 AM #

    ^ Here, here. Not sure what such a facility would run these days, but I’m guessing $6M would be a pretty good start.

  4. StateFans 02/01/2011 at 9:53 AM #

    sf, it is ‘timeless’ information. Came out in print on Christmas Eve. A lot of people didn’t see it. Why would we rush to blog it in the middle of all of the other stuff we have going on?

  5. section2chuck 02/01/2011 at 9:55 AM #

    Thank you DY…we have needed to upgrade that scoreboard for a while now…EZU shouldnt have a better scoreboard than us..just sayin

  6. PackInsider 02/01/2011 at 11:14 AM #

    I think the “dirty secret” with respect to the Doak is that it was way behind when it was complete. Those upgrades fell short.

  7. Prowling Woofie 02/01/2011 at 11:32 AM #

    Wonder if some of these funds can be used for the BB Coach Upgrade Fund ?

  8. 61Packer 02/01/2011 at 11:50 AM #

    If this money includes a “mute” button, I’ll contribute!!!!!

  9. bigjake1708 02/01/2011 at 11:50 AM #

    The soccer field really is sad. I go to the games and my high school soccer team had as many people show up. With that new coach, people might be fighting for a place to sit if he does a good a job here as he did at Butler.

  10. Wolfy__79 02/01/2011 at 11:59 AM #

    ^hahahaha!

  11. packalum44 02/01/2011 at 12:00 PM #

    SEC programs (e.g. Auburn) are spending upwards of 20M on indoor practice facilities. The nicer ones are 120 yards long and can allow all sports to practice. I suppose this will be a long term plan, 10 years or so.

    Perhaps Cree can cut us a sweet deal for the scoreboard. They are an NC State spin-off after all.

  12. Wolfy__79 02/01/2011 at 12:02 PM #

    an indoor practice facility would be an awesome recruiting tool. how many acc schools have indoor facilities?

  13. PackCoT07 02/01/2011 at 12:11 PM #

    I think its pretty weak if they just upgrade the screen in the old scoreboard. That thing is really small compared to todays standards. Also, I wonder if they are planning on doing anything with the sound system, that thing is so distorted you can’t understand a word that is said over the PA.

  14. Icabod61 02/01/2011 at 12:23 PM #

    i could live with the video side of things for several more years if the sound system were upgraded. I couldn’t believe how bad it was when initially installed.

  15. Clarksa 02/01/2011 at 12:37 PM #

    Wasn’t the sound system was upgraded before the past season?

  16. 61Packer 02/01/2011 at 12:48 PM #

    THE SOUND SYSTEM ON THE CFS SCOREBOARD IS DISTORTED BECAUSE IT’S TOO LOUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    It’s bothersome even when you’re in the parking lot tailgating. And inside the stadium, especially where I sit near the north end zone, it’s so loud you can’t even talk to the person beside you. If they’d turn the damned thing down, get rid of the hip-hop music, and use it only when there’s something to say (lineup intros), then they might get people into the stadium well before kickoff. And keep it turned off during the half so the band can be heard.

    Look, I know some of you feel we’ve got to keep up with the UNCs, the Clemsons, the Florida States, etc, but I’m more concerned with the product on the field, not the flippin’ scoreboard. It’s a big enough distraction already as far as I’m concerned!

  17. OldEnough 02/01/2011 at 1:11 PM #

    The problem with the volume on the scoreboard is as much the idiot running the audio as or the cheer leaders when they are trying to get the crowd involved. I sit in the north endzone too, and the sound system can make it a miserable experence.

  18. WolftownVA81 02/01/2011 at 1:23 PM #

    Have to agree with 61. Also, they must be doing this very quietly over at the WPC because I haven’t received a donation request. Then again, they just sent me my 2010 membership package after I rejoined when LF was canned. Perhaps I’ll get the request in another 6 mos. when they break ground.

  19. lsutton5144 02/01/2011 at 1:43 PM #

    North end zone rooster here as well. The sound is horrible – – way too loud, and not what I would call music. My daughter is 21 and she hates most of it too! Turn it down and play a good mix of real music. OR PLAY NOTHING! ! ! We are right in line with the scoreboard and have thought about trying to move our seats because it’s so loud. 61 is right – you can’t talk to the person next to you. And while I’m complaining, let’s get a new PA announcer that’s got some enthusiasm. Never heard another announcer say “sufficient” when we get a first down.

  20. Grumpy Llama 02/01/2011 at 2:00 PM #

    Okay, I’m gonna put in my gripe. The scoreboard is too damn low. I’m in Section 23, and the bottom half of the scoreboard is obscured by the upper bleachers. I can see the video screen just fine, but little things like, down and distance, are blocked from my view. Sorry. It’s been bugging me for a few years now. Continue.

  21. Clarksa 02/01/2011 at 2:25 PM #

    Just curious, for those who bought tickets in the North Endzone…didn’t you realize there is a giant a$$ scoreboard with a loud speaker system behind your seats?

  22. lsutton5144 02/01/2011 at 2:43 PM #

    Yeah, I did. Just didn’t realize there was an ididot running the sound. The sound is really the only thing I don’t like about our seats. Cupholder, lots of leg room. I’ve tried the bleachers, even with a chair back, and my aching back can’t take it.

  23. NCStatePride 02/01/2011 at 3:27 PM #

    You know, I love the mention of Fowler in the comments. I had always wondered if Fowler was crazy about building facilities because they are big, visible signs of progress, but didn’t actually give a rip about upkeep. The sound and score board have been issues for a while.

    I would agree with the sentiments about soccer, though. I’m glad that they specifically mentioned a real estate specialist was commenting about the soccer stadium. I know I’m reading into this too much, but it seems to imply we want to find land for a dedicated soccer stadium.

  24. JKL 02/01/2011 at 4:43 PM #

    I’ve always said that Carter Finley should get two led strip/displays (similar to the one that encircles the upper level of the RBC Center) to go on the bottom “facing” of both upper sideline sections.

    That “facing” currently houses the university name and the names of players with retired jerseys and still could with the proposed LED strips – the names could remain static during plays, but scroll “Wolf Pack” or “Get Loud” on big downs or be used as ad space during official timeouts.

    Don’t think it would be TOO expensive…Thoughts? Maybe one of the creative readers could mock up a picture for those of us that are visually focused.

  25. ncsu1 02/01/2011 at 5:24 PM #

    I have no problem with the audio. I thought they just upgraded it this year?

    If you’re down in the low seats of Section 7 or 8 then you couldn’t hear the thing during the introductions… it’s not really motivating with respect to the atmosphere if you have to strain to hear what’s going on with the board.

Leave a Reply