Major upgrades are coming to Jackson State University after hiring Deion Sanders.
Jackson State University Vice President and Director of Athletics Ashley Robinson announced Phase One of its comprehensive athletics facilities upgrade on Thursday afternoon.
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Phase one of the upgrades includes the Lee E. Williams Athletics & Assembly Center, the JSU Practice Pavilion, and outdoor track that is adjacent to the Walter Payton Health & Recreation Center.
“The student-athlete experience is of the highest priority,” Robinson said. “The majority of time athletes dedicate to pursuing excellence in their respective sports happens within their team’s athletic venue, so it’s crucial that we continue to make our athletic facilities the best they can be.”
A source says “friends of Deion Sanders” have been putting up some sizable donations to help with the upgrades. When asked if Sanders’ friends were involved in funding or pitching in, a JSU official declined any such knowledge.
The first part of the plan will see upgrades to the basketball facility, the Lee E. Williams Athletic and Assembly Center. Exterior repairs will be made as well as renovations to the locker room for men’s and women’s basketball.
The Walter Payton Recreation and Wellness Center will be transformed into a football practice pavilion with a covered roof. The project will be similar to UAB’s practice facility, with a steel foundation and covered roof. It will also be surrounded by a track.
Sanders was introduced as head coach at Jackson State on Sept. 21. Earlier this week the new head coach posted a video on his Instagram account of Sanders being shown blueprints by Robinson.
The Coach Prime Effect continues to make waves in the capital of Missississippi.
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