Standing at the gateway to Liberty University’s athletics corridor, the magnificent new Liberty Indoor Practice Facility is symbolic of the transformation Flames Football is undergoing as it reclassifies to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) over the next two seasons.
The university celebrated the opening of the $29 million facility in August with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, sponsored by the Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance. Director of Athletics Ian McCaw, Head Football Coach Turner Gill, and President Jerry Falwell addressed the crowd.
“It hasn’t been too many years ago that the FBS seemed like something that would happen in the next generation, and an indoor practice facility was something that we would only dream about,” Falwell said. “I thought it would be a long time coming, so to see it actually being finished this quickly is beyond exciting. It’s really going to take our football program to another level.”
The 95,000-square-foot structure provides a full-size AstroTurf indoor football practice field, with a 70-foot ceiling clearance. Next year, a visiting team’s locker room will be added.
A plaza outside the University Boulevard entrance welcomes Flames fans to tailgate parties and other pregame activities. Recruiting dinners, as well as banquets and special functions, can also be held inside the facility.
Football isn’t the only athletics program that will benefit from the new building. Student-athletes from multiple sports will have the opportunity to train indoors year-round.
“It literally is something that will be used every day of the year,” McCaw said.
