Over the offseason, the entire Kentucky football team got new glasses. That’s what you’d believe, anyway, based on how well players have said they can see inside the Nutter Field House this fall.
Instead of a mass trip to the optometrist, Nutter Field House just upgraded its lights.
The Nutter Field House hosts several of Kentucky’s athletic programs; the football team uses it to practice when it needs to get out of the rain or snow. The old lighting system was torn down and new lights were installed in the facility over the summer.
The University of Kentucky Athletic Association paid $110,000 for the re-lamping project, according to the Athletic Association Board of Directors’ expenses for the 2011 fiscal year.
Adding the new lights has made a huge difference to everybody, head coach Joker Phillips said. Among the group most excited about the upgrade are wide receivers and cornerbacks, whose job relies heavily on looking up and finding a ball in flight.
“It’s a great add on to the field house because it was dark in here,” said junior receiver Gene McCaskill. “It was real dark. Now it’s bright and you don’t have to adjust to the low lights or anything. It’s weird.”
Also among the primary beneficiaries is quarterback Morgan Newton. He spent two seasons and two rounds of spring practice in around Nutter before the upgrade. He got used to the old setup and didn’t complain, he said. “But none of us would go back now,” he said.
Though the football team doesn’t practice in the field house full-time — they have their outdoor fields at the Nutter Training Facility down the street for that — the facility gets use from several other teams throughout the year, including track and field, baseball, softball, and men’s and women’s soccer.
So Phillips and his squad weren’t the only ones to get a boost visually without seeing the eye doctor.
“It’s a huge difference. It’s a lot better lighting in here,” Phillips said. “We still don’t have any A/C but it’s a huge difference.”
Optimus-Blue said...
Only UlK would brag about replacing lights that have been needed to be replaced for years Matt I respectively disagree with allot of your post, if UK has trouble raising money maybe it the methods they are using is not working, Miss State,Ark( poor states just like ky) are doing major fundrising for major projects in football fascilities and fans can keep up with the projects and goals,where as we get press release about replacing lights, I snicker when I see the spin
This post was edited by BG631 on 8/21/2011 at 1:38 AM
Optimus-Blue said...
Only UlK would brag about replacing lights that have been needed to be replaced for years Matt I respectively disagree with allot of your post, if UK has trouble raising money maybe it the methods they are using is not working, Miss State,Ark( poor states just like ky) are doing major fundrising for major projects in football fascilities and fans can keep up with the projects and goals,where as we get press release about replacing lights, I snicker when I see the spin
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bigcat65 said...
It just points out that some have an agenda that has worn many of us thin. Its time to move on and respect that UK is making gradual improvements as they gain resources. Like you said, KY isn't bragging about new lights but yet anything that is done is scoffed at and turned into an anti Barnhart/UKAA attack by OB. Its tiring and as Matt pointed out, its simply unrealistic to think Mitch or the UKAA "doesn't care about football". Not only does it not make any financial sense to not care, it isn't supported with any facts whatsoever.
Matt May said...
And that's after pouring a heck of a lot into infrastructure stuff the last 3-5 years (new locker rooms, meeting rooms, practice fields and surfaces, etc., etc.) It's a process, and one they are having to undergo without zero help from the university and one of the lowest donor/booster money in the conference (not to mention that people throw a hissy fit whenever they up ticket prices). I always snicker when people suggest Barnhart and Co. don't care about football. People can have their issues with the administration and that's fine, but to suggest he doesn't care about improving football is utterly ridiculous and uninformed. The current administration has done more to improve football than any at UK.
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