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University of New Hampshire Athletics
The Wildcats celebrated their renovated locker room on their return to campus in August.
An Impressive Football 'Home' Makeover, Thanks to Donors
9/25/2019 3:29:00 PM | Football, UNH Insider, Athletics Development
Construction Photo Gallery
Watch Construction Video
DURHAM, N.H. – They couldn't wait.
The University of New Hampshire football team's first practice of fall camp had just ended on a sunny and warm August afternoon and the Wildcats headed back to their locker room with much anticipation.
"Air conditioning," said one player to another. "How great is that?"
Very great, the Wildcats all agreed.
The team reported back to campus in August to a locker room renovation that featured air conditioning and individual brand new wooden lockers complete with charging stations and storage areas.
The total cost of the extreme and exciting makeover, which was completed in two phases, came in at nearly $1 million and was completely financed through private donations.
"It's pretty fancy," said senior running back Evan Gray. "Those lockers are nice. It's really nice to have that AC. AC's the best part. I love that. The locker room looks awesome."
Bob '62 and Suzie Lane and the family of James "Red" Hayes – led by Tom and Margie (Hayes) Brown, and Gail (Hayes) Kelly '66 and her late husband, Ed Kelly – spurred the launch of Phase II of the renovation with major donations to the project.
"It's just a tremendous, tremendous result of some hard work that people put into it," said Sean McDonnell '78, who is currently on a leave of absence to deal with health issues. "I'm really just proud of the Brown and Kelly families and the Lane family and the people that gave to it and the people who really invested in our guys' future by giving them a great home. I couldn't be more pleased with how it came out."
UNH, led by interim head coach Ricky Santos '08, celebrated its first win in the revamped facility on Saturday after knocking off Rhode Island, 27-24. The Wildcats hope to whoop it up again on Saturday after they face Duquesne in Wildcat Stadium at 1 p.m. in their Family Weekend game. Get Tickets
Phase I of the renovations that features a meeting and player lounge area in the James "Red" Hayes '32 Football Locker Room, including video screens, was completed in the summer of 2017.
Phase II finished things off.
"It opens up the space," McDonnell said. "It makes it bright in there. It cleans it up. It gives the guys a nice place to go and rest their heads when they're getting ready for practice, games, meetings and everything like that. It's a pretty neat situation. It's their home. They're up here all the time, these kids. It's something for them to take great pride in, that people care about our program enough to donate a million dollars to put this together and make it come out as well as it did."
Director of athletics Marty Scarano, too, expressed excitement about how the entire project came out and thanked the Brown, Kelly and Lane families and numerous other donors for their roles in making it happen.
"It's a complete redo," Scarano said. "At the end of the day I feel like we did the very best with what space we were given. The institution helped with the air conditioning, but all the rest of it was privately raised, every single dime of it, which we're awfully proud of."
The Brown and Kelly families have long had a special connection to UNH.
Red Hayes, who played football for the Wildcats and is a member of the school's Hall of Fame, was a prominent New Hampshire businessman and community leader and long supported the football program and the university. His donations during the locker room's original construction led to the facility being named in his honor.
"Jim was, through and through, a staunch fan of UNH football, regardless of the outcome of the games," said Tom Brown, Margie's husband and the former president of New Hampshire Distributors in Concord, a company founded by Jim Hayes. "Jim bled blue. I remember many times Jim would drive to a road game by himself and sit in the stands in the pouring rain and be the only fan there. He was recognized as the No. 1 fan in the early 1980s. We wanted to raise some funds and keep his name there as a remembrance and a memorial of what it meant to him. We try to support UNH and its athletics programs from a family perspective and a business perspective as well."
The department of athletics is most appreciative.
"It's really neat," Scarano said. "It's a legacy. Members of the Hayes family have a legacy of supporting the football program and it's been carried on. And then Bob and Suzie Lane gave a major donation. We wouldn't be sitting here today talking about a football locker room if it wasn't for those families. We're so appreciative for the support of all our fans and contributors."
Senior safety Pop Lacey also thanked those who made the enhanced locker room a reality.
"We spend a lot of time there during the season, during fall camp, during spring ball, all the time," he said. "Even during the summer. Being able to have a place that's comfortable for us and being able to go to a place where we want to be and we feel like it's home, is every important to us and we want to thank all the donors for that. Honestly, we're very appreciative of the new locker room we have because it's amazing."
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
Watch Construction Video
DURHAM, N.H. – They couldn't wait.
The University of New Hampshire football team's first practice of fall camp had just ended on a sunny and warm August afternoon and the Wildcats headed back to their locker room with much anticipation.
"Air conditioning," said one player to another. "How great is that?"
Very great, the Wildcats all agreed.
The team reported back to campus in August to a locker room renovation that featured air conditioning and individual brand new wooden lockers complete with charging stations and storage areas.
The total cost of the extreme and exciting makeover, which was completed in two phases, came in at nearly $1 million and was completely financed through private donations.
"It's pretty fancy," said senior running back Evan Gray. "Those lockers are nice. It's really nice to have that AC. AC's the best part. I love that. The locker room looks awesome."
Bob '62 and Suzie Lane and the family of James "Red" Hayes – led by Tom and Margie (Hayes) Brown, and Gail (Hayes) Kelly '66 and her late husband, Ed Kelly – spurred the launch of Phase II of the renovation with major donations to the project.
"It's just a tremendous, tremendous result of some hard work that people put into it," said Sean McDonnell '78, who is currently on a leave of absence to deal with health issues. "I'm really just proud of the Brown and Kelly families and the Lane family and the people that gave to it and the people who really invested in our guys' future by giving them a great home. I couldn't be more pleased with how it came out."
UNH, led by interim head coach Ricky Santos '08, celebrated its first win in the revamped facility on Saturday after knocking off Rhode Island, 27-24. The Wildcats hope to whoop it up again on Saturday after they face Duquesne in Wildcat Stadium at 1 p.m. in their Family Weekend game. Get Tickets
Phase I of the renovations that features a meeting and player lounge area in the James "Red" Hayes '32 Football Locker Room, including video screens, was completed in the summer of 2017. Phase II finished things off.
"It opens up the space," McDonnell said. "It makes it bright in there. It cleans it up. It gives the guys a nice place to go and rest their heads when they're getting ready for practice, games, meetings and everything like that. It's a pretty neat situation. It's their home. They're up here all the time, these kids. It's something for them to take great pride in, that people care about our program enough to donate a million dollars to put this together and make it come out as well as it did."
Director of athletics Marty Scarano, too, expressed excitement about how the entire project came out and thanked the Brown, Kelly and Lane families and numerous other donors for their roles in making it happen.
"It's a complete redo," Scarano said. "At the end of the day I feel like we did the very best with what space we were given. The institution helped with the air conditioning, but all the rest of it was privately raised, every single dime of it, which we're awfully proud of."
The Brown and Kelly families have long had a special connection to UNH.
Red Hayes, who played football for the Wildcats and is a member of the school's Hall of Fame, was a prominent New Hampshire businessman and community leader and long supported the football program and the university. His donations during the locker room's original construction led to the facility being named in his honor.
"Jim was, through and through, a staunch fan of UNH football, regardless of the outcome of the games," said Tom Brown, Margie's husband and the former president of New Hampshire Distributors in Concord, a company founded by Jim Hayes. "Jim bled blue. I remember many times Jim would drive to a road game by himself and sit in the stands in the pouring rain and be the only fan there. He was recognized as the No. 1 fan in the early 1980s. We wanted to raise some funds and keep his name there as a remembrance and a memorial of what it meant to him. We try to support UNH and its athletics programs from a family perspective and a business perspective as well."
The department of athletics is most appreciative.
"It's really neat," Scarano said. "It's a legacy. Members of the Hayes family have a legacy of supporting the football program and it's been carried on. And then Bob and Suzie Lane gave a major donation. We wouldn't be sitting here today talking about a football locker room if it wasn't for those families. We're so appreciative for the support of all our fans and contributors."
Senior safety Pop Lacey also thanked those who made the enhanced locker room a reality.
"We spend a lot of time there during the season, during fall camp, during spring ball, all the time," he said. "Even during the summer. Being able to have a place that's comfortable for us and being able to go to a place where we want to be and we feel like it's home, is every important to us and we want to thank all the donors for that. Honestly, we're very appreciative of the new locker room we have because it's amazing."
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
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