Soaring to VictoryFootball Operations Center
Above: Paulson Field View
“You cannot fly like an eagle with the wings of a wren.” - William Henry Hudson
Above: Paulson Field View
Football Operations Center Location: East end of Paulson Stadium on Lanier Drive
Proposed building size: 57,000 square feet
Fundraising goal: $10,000,000*
* Largest privately funded project in the history
of Georgia Southern University.
Above: Lanier Drive View / Erk Russell Plaza
I don’t have to tell you that ath-
letics is important to Georgia
Southern University. And I prob-
ably don’t have to tell you that
football is the jewel in our athletic
crown. All one has to do is attend a game
at Paulson Stadium and see the six na-
tional championship flags flying proudly
above the stands. Even more magnificent
is the sight of Freedom, Georgia South-
ern’s bald eagle, soaring above the crowd
before the game begins.
Just as important to Georgia
Southern is our focus on academic excel-
lence for our students. There is a reason
they are called “student-athletes.” We
expect our student-athletes to be just as
successful in the classroom as they are
on the field. The Athletics’ Rings & Di-
plomas program strives to help each of
our 400 student-athletes win a cham-
pionship ring and earn their diploma.
Our ultimate goal is to ensure that the
coaches and athletes have all they need
to be successful in both endeavors.
The construction of a new foot-
ball operations center in the east end
zone of Paulson Stadium is a major in-
vestment in our efforts to position our
football program as a perennial national
contender. This building will be one of
the finest facilities of its kind in the entire
country. It will allow us to recruit, train,
and develop the highest-caliber student-
athletes. It will also help other athletic
programs at the University by providing
better space utilization and training for
over two-thirds of our athletes in other
sports.
As competition for the best stu-
dent-athletes becomes more fierce every
year, we must do all that we can to fur-
ther position our football program as a
national powerhouse. Our alumni and
supporters are vocal in their desire to see
a seventh national championship flag fly
above Paulson Stadium and a return to
the “Glory Days.” I personally invite you
to join many others as we strive to make
this dream come true. Our combined ef-
forts today will ensure our future success,
and you will have the heartfelt thanks of
a great Eagle Nation.
Go Eagles!
Brooks A. Keel, Ph.D.
President
“This building will be one of the
finest facilities of its kind in the
entire country. It will allow us
to recruit, train, and develop the
highest-caliber student-athletes. ”
Co-Building Naming Gift $1,500,000
Hall of Fame $1,000,000
Team Meeting Room $500,000
Players’ Lounge $500,000
Erk Russell Plaza $250,000
Head Coach’s Office $250,000
Offensive Conference Room $250,000
Defensive Conference Room $250,000
Welcome Center / Reception $250,000
Video Production Suite $150,000
Coordinator Office $100,000 (2)
Player Personnel Office $50,000
Recruiting Coordinator Office $50,000
Position Coach Office $50,000 (10)
Large Position Meeting Room $50,000 (2)
Staff Break Room $25,000
Staff Work Room $25,000
Video Production Staff Office $25,000 (3)
Position Meeting Room $25,000 (4)
Catering Kitchen $10,000
Head Coach Admin Asst $10,000
Academic Center $10,000
Main Floor Men’s Restroom $10,000
Main Floor Women’s Restroom $10,000
Video Production Room
(Green / Archive) $10,000 (2)
Naming Opportunities:
Georgia Southern
Football’s unprec-
edented six National
Championships, eight
Southern Conference
Titles, three national Player of the Year
recipients, and over seventy All-Ameri-
cans are the benchmark for football
programs across the nation at the
FCS level. Our history and
tradition are second to none
at any level, and the impor-
tance of football at our Univer-
sity, and in our community,
is the envy of programs
throughout collegiate
sports.
As one of college
football’s elite pro-
grams, GSU has
been able to attract some incredibly
talented athletes, many of whom have
become legends among our Eagle faith-
ful…Ham, Smith, Hill, Stokes, Peterson,
Foster to name a few. Countless play-
ers have received national honors and
several have played professionally after
their great careers at Georgia Southern.
Along with that, we have fielded cham-
pionship teams by taking pride in the
hallmarks of our program, inspired by
Erk Russell’s leadership in his first teams,
having a blue-collar work ethic and a
never-say-die attitude.
Through the years, and the champi-
onships, we have built our facilities, both
out of necessity and in an attempt to
keep up with our competition. Though
we have been the standard for others
in terms of our on-the-field success, we
have continually had to overcome facil-
ity issues in competing for prospects and
in player development. We are now at
the point where we have fallen behind.
We are no longer competitive in re-
cruiting with many programs, in particu-
lar, FCS powers like Appalachian State.
Frankly stated, our operations facilities
are far inferior to top programs and are
creating challenges for us to win in re-
cruiting and on the field.
With the construction of the pro-
posed 57,000 square foot football op-
erations center in the east end zone of
Paulson Stadium, our facilities will be
among the best in FCS football and rival
many FBS programs. The facility will
not only create the recruiting advantage
that we desire, but will allow us to bet-
ter train and prepare our team to con-
tinue to play championship level football
and position us to be an elite program
at this level for decades to come. It will
also give us the necessary facility to be a
viable candidate for a move up if repo-
sitioning of college football conferences
takes place in the coming years.
It’s my job to see that each one of our
student-athletes is honored with a cham-
pionship ring and a diploma from Geor-
gia Southern University. I am proud to
be a part of a team that supports these
same goals for our young people. Please
join us as we work to ensure that “Rings
and Diplomas” is fulfilled.
Respectfully,
Jeff Monken
Head Football Coach
Locker Room $500,000
Weight Room $500,000
Sports Medicine / Rehabilitation Center $500,000
Equipment Room $250,000
Tracy Ham Locker / Display Sponsorship $250,000
Adrian Peterson Locker / Display Sponsorship $250,000
Hydrotherapy Rehabilitation Room $150,000
Coaches’ Locker Room $50,000
Staff Office $25,000 (7)
Physicians’ Examination Room $25,000
Game Day Equipment Room $10,000
Nutrition Room $10,000
Laundry Room $10,000
Team Showers $10,000
Women’s Staff Managers’ Locker Room $10,000
Men’s Staff Managers’ Locker Room $10,000
Player Shoe Room $10,000
Naming Opportunities:
Georgia Southern University Athletic FoundationP.O. BOX 8115-01
STATESBORO, GEORGIA 30460-8115
1-912-478-5520
www.ringsanddiplomas.com