“This gift is a huge thank you to everything, on and off the field, that Miami University provided me. Attending Miami was one of the best decisions of my life and I am happy to play a small part in helping to rebuild this football program.” – Ben.
Miami University opened its indoor sports center the first week of February, but it will be officially unveiled to the public during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 25th.
In October of last year, Ben and Ashley agreed to donate $1 million towards the Indoor Sports Center at Miami University.
The 91,000-square-foot complex that took about a year to construct was funded by $13 million in donations, and it will be used by student-athletes, intramural and club sports teams as well as youth athletic programs for tournaments.
The facility includes a full 120-yard football field with a synthetic playing surface similar to neighboring Yager Stadium. It also has netting for baseball, softball and golf; four 100-yard sprint lanes, a high jump and long jump equipment for track; storage space and an observation deck.
According to the Miami Redhawks site, this new facility “will positively impact all 19 of Miami’s sports programs and allow teams to train year-round”.
“I want to thank Ben and Ashley for their support of Miami Athletics. This gift continues our vision to make a difference in the lives of our student-athletes and that includes winning MAC Championships. I am thankful that both Ben and Ashley share in that same vision.” – Miami Athletics Director David Sayler.
More from the Miami Redhawks website:
In his time at Miami, Roethlisberger completed 854-of-1,304 pass attempts for 10,829 yards and 84 touchdowns from 2001-03. His junior campaign was one for the ages, throwing for 4,486 yards and 37 touchdowns, leading Miami to 12-consecutive wins, including a Mid-American Conference Championship and GMAC Bowl victory.
That season alone, he captured third-team All-America honors and was just the third player in Miami history to garner the Vern Smith Award as the Mid-American Conference Most Valuable Player.
Roethlisberger to this day still ranks first in Miami history in completion percentage (.655) and touchdowns, and is second in pass attempts, completions, yards and total offense (11,075).
*Photo courtesy of Kyle Kron (@kylekronMiami).
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