UMass Unveils Recent Upgrades and Updates to Football Performance Center

AMHERST, Mass. - University of Massachusetts football unveiled a series of upgrades and updates to its Martin Jacobson Football Performance Center on Thursday. Funded in its entirety by donations and through the generosity and support of the UMass Football Gridiron Club, it includes a renewal of the strength and conditioning suite as well as a revitalization of the artwork and branding found throughout the team locker room, Hunt Hospitality Suite, visitor welcome center, UMass in the NFL wall and the coaches hallway.

The strength and conditioning suite received new equipment and a nutrition center to enhance in the physical development of UMass football student-athletes. The nutrition center represents an expansion of what was previously available to the program and offers pre- and post-workout nutrition and hydration mere feet from the active training space. In addition to new equipment, a turf training area was also installed within the room.

In the revitalized visitor welcome center, rhe NFL wall showcases UMass alumni to play in the National Football League and the artwork highlights five of the most recent individuals: Victor Cruz, James Ihedigbo, Andy Isabella, Tajae Sharpe and Elijah Wilkinson.

The current Adidas-issued team gear stands on display next to the NFL wall opposite the 1998 National Championship Trophy display. This welcome area leads visitors to the coaches hallway, where they tour a snapshot history of the program paralleling the team's academic success and University of Massachusetts points-of-pride as they travel the length of the building.

In the Hunt Hospitality Suite, fans, alumni, players and coaches now view an all-encompassing history of the program's 22 conference and national championship-winning seasons. Team or celebratory photos are paired with a year-by-year list of all seasons UMass won a championship during.

Sports Performance Suite

New equipment
- A revitalization of the in-suite training equipment used daily by the program to grow bigger, faster and stronger
Turf Training Area
- The installment of a section of turf within the sports performance center
- Provides an indoor area for speed, sprint and footwork drills
Nutrition Center
- The introduction of a larger, permanent nutrition facility within the sports performance suite
- Grants immediate, in-room access to pre-workout fuel and post-workout recovery meals and drinks

Hunt Hospitality Suite - Football At The Flagship

Floor-to-ceiling image display highlighting all 22 conference championship-winning teams and national postseason participants paired with the current and former logo and branding artwork
Celebratory "cornerstone" imagery of the program's first conference championship (1960), inaugural bowl game champions (1972), national runners-up finishes (1978, 2006) and national championship-winning team (1998)
Team photos of the 1963-64, '66-67, '69, '71, '74, '77, '79, '81-82, '86, '88, '90, '99, '03, '07 winners of Yankee Conference, Atlantic 10 or Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) championships

Coaches Hallway Display Breakdown

Coaching Staff Photo Roster
- Includes head coach Walt Bell, the 10 assistant coaches and the sports performance coach
Minutemen In The Classroom
- Display showcasing the recent and historic academic success of the program
- Photos or recent graduates appear with a list of major academic award winners and academic-based team notes
The University of Massachusetts
- Noteworthy campus rankings and ratings and business-related alumni information
"The New Era"
- An overview of head coach Walt Bell's program-building points of emphasis
"Massachusetts Men"
- Highlights the program's connection to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, including gamedays spent at Fenway Park and Gillette Stadium
Homecoming
- Massachusetts football's foundational connection to Homecoming celebrations at the University of Massachusetts
The 1998 National Champions
- Showcases the program's national championship season with an overview of that year's success alongside the team photo and in-game photography of key individuals from the 1998 season
The 1978 & 2006 National Finalists
- Information on the 1978 and 2006 teams, which reached their respective national championship games

The Visitor Welcome Center

A communal meeting area on the second floor of the FPC comprising the team's NFL wall, the team-issued Adidas gear displays and the 1998 National Championship trophy

Locker Room Art Displays

Updated artistic and celebratory photography displays in the team's NFL-styler locker room entry hallway and locker endcaps

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