As Ball State University football players hustled around the practice field to prepare for the upcoming season, construction workers have feverishly worked on completing Scheumann Stadium for the season opener.
The initial deadline for the renovations was Aug. 17. However, that date was pushed back to Aug. 28 while the Shook Construction Co. finishes landscaping around Scheumann Stadium.
"It will be ready by opening night," Kevin Kenyon, associate vice president of facilities planning and management, said. "We're down to the final details. It should have no effect on the football game, whatsoever."
Shook Construction Co. has been working on Scheumann Stadium since late 2006. Renovations include a closed north end with a grass seating area, a new press box with 16 suites and a new synthetic grass playing surface among other things. The entire project was estimated to cost $13 million.
The athletic department will host the grand opening and dedication Tuesday. Members of the Cardinal Varsity Club can buy tickets for $15, while non-members and students can buy tickets for $20. Children's tickets are being sold for $5.
Chris Taylor, director of communications and marketing at Ball State, said the entire day Tuesday will be a campus-wide celebration.
"There will be an event on campus earlier that day, along with ribbon cutting and a dedication that evening," Taylor said.
Rob Richards, Ball State's ticket manager, said he's been pleased with the number of tickets that have been sold so far. Tickets for all of the newly constructed press boxes have been sold, and Richards said the number of season tickets sold ha been slightly more than in recent years.
However, Richards did not provide an exact number because he said the week before the season opener is always the busiest time for ticket sales.
"When classes start and everybody is on campus, a lot more people start buying tickets," Richards said. "Every day from now until [Aug. 30] will be more active."
Taylor said the athletic department has used the stadium renovations in marketing tickets for Ball State's season opener.
"The new stadium renovations have been a major part of the message we've sent to our ticket buyers," Taylor said.
Though the deadline has been pushed back a week and a half, Ball State coach Brady Hoke said the constant construction has not become a distraction to his players.
"Believe me, they're worried about football only," Hoke said. "They have a field to practice on and they have all their equipment. Their minds are on Miami [University] right now and nothing else."
Junior tight end Darius Hill, who led the team with 741 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns last season, said the promise of stadium renovations was a major reason he came to Ball State. With the renovations completed, Hill believes the new stadium will help even more with recruiting.
"When recruits visit the campus, they definitely look at the stadium," Hill said. "They're looking for a stadium that's a step up from high school. What we've got now, with the press box and field turf, it's definitely better than high school stadiums. So I think this is going to help the program a lot with recruiting."
Cardinals receiver Donte Love said the players are happy to play in a newly-renovated stadium.
"You only get to be the first team to play in a new stadium once," Love said. "So it's a pretty exciting thing for all of us."
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