UTSA opens state-of-the-art facility to promote success of student-athletes
(San Antonio, August 4, 2021) — The University of Texas at San Antonio today unveiled its Roadrunner Athletics Center of Excellence (RACE), a milestone in the university’s strategic vision to create a central hub for UTSA Athletics and to further promote the academic success, health, wellness and performance of the university’s student-athletes.
RACE is a $40.4 million athletic training facility located on 10.8 acres of land near the southwest corner of the university’s Main Campus. It was made possible through philanthropic gifts, support from the City of San Antonio’s 2017 bond referendum and financing from the Roadrunner Foundation.
“Great universities have exceptional academic, research and athletics enterprises. The addition of RACE will further propel UTSA to national recognition while advancing our success as Division I competitors in Conference USA and generating a great sense of pride for San Antonio,” said UTSA President Taylor Eighmy. “I am grateful for the support of Gene Dawson and the Roadrunner Foundation Board, the leadership of our Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Lisa Campos, the partnership of the City of San Antonio, and the generosity of so many donors who helped bring RACE to life.”
The new facility will help enhance UTSA’s competitiveness in recruiting and retaining the nation’s best student-athletes, coaches and staff. A foundational project in UTSA’s 10-year strategic vision to achieve national standing as a Carnegie R1 institution, the nearly 95,000 square-foot facility includes academic spaces, a sports medicine center, strength and conditioning facilities, locker rooms, meeting rooms, staff and coaches’ offices, an equipment room and practice fields.
“At UTSA, student success is at the core of everything we do. We are committed to providing all of our students, including our student-athletes, with the very best environment to enable them to achieve their full potential,” said Lisa Campos, UTSA vice president for Intercollegiate Athletics and Athletics Director. “Just as UTSA is becoming an exemplar in academics and research, UTSA Athletics is increasingly gaining national recognition. RACE will have a long-lasting impact in further propelling UTSA’s stature as a Division I competitor. It is foundational to the Athletics priorities of UTSA’s Be Bold capital campaign.”
“The Roadrunner Athletics Center of Excellence will be a tremendous asset that enables UTSA to recruit the very best student-athletes, coaches and staff to San Antonio,” said Gene Dawson, president of the Roadrunner Foundation. “There has been great enthusiasm for this project among the members of the Roadrunner Foundation, and to see it become a reality is just as special for us as it is for UTSA and its student-athletes. This is a very exciting time to be a Roadrunner.”
As part of its commitment as an urban serving, community-engaged university, UTSA will make RACE available for public use, including for athletics camps and clinics.
With RACE complete, UTSA will focus its attention on the second phase of its athletics facilities project: the addition of a covered pavilion over the synthetic turf practice field and the construction of a facility at the university’s Park West Campus. UTSA is currently in the fundraising stage for that project.
“When I first arrived in San Antonio, my good friend Red McCombs wisely shared with me that our athletics program is the front porch to our university,” said Eighmy. “Intercollegiate athletics is integral to the college experience for our student-athletes, our university community and our alumni and friends in San Antonio, in Texas and across the globe. Today is a very special day that is foundational for the future of UTSA Athletics. We look forward to building on this momentum and seizing the opportunities that lie ahead.”
Key features of RACE are:
Academic Spaces
7,000 square feet of academic space, including a 1,000 square-foot study hall, 10 private tutoring rooms, a computer lab, a classroom and office space for UTSA Athletics Academic Services staff.
Sports Medicine Center
A sports medicine center with treatment areas, an exam room, a recovery room and office space for athletic trainers and physicians. It also will include an enclosed hydrotherapy room and aquatic therapy equipment for rehabilitation.
Strength and Conditioning Center
14,000 square feet of strength and conditioning spaces, including a weight room available to all UTSA student-athletes, with state-of-the-art equipment, a cardio mezzanine, a nutrition center and office space for trainers and coaches. The space will offer direct access to the practice fields.
Practice Fields
Two parallel football practice fields: one synthetic turf field and one field with natural grass.
Locker Room
A 7,500 square-foot locker room will include 120 lockers and a players’ lounge for the football program.
Meeting Rooms
Multiple rooms located in the center of the facility to accommodate full team gatherings, as well as specialized meeting spaces.
For more information about RACE and to support the ongoing campaign, visit goutsa.com/RACE.
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