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          College Football Nation Blog

          Maryland releases new look at Cole Field House plans

          • Dan Murphy, ESPN Staff WriterOct 20, 2016, 03:10 PM ET
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            • Covers the Big Ten
            • Joined ESPN.com in 2014
            • Graduate of the University of Notre Dame
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          Maryland released new images and ambitious plans this week for its long-term makeover of its iconic former home to the Terrapins basketball program.

          The project, first announced in 2014, will turn Cole Field House into an indoor football facility adjacent to the campus stadium in College Park. Along with three practice fields, a new weight room and football offices, the university also plans to use the remodeled campus hub as a home for several types of sports-related research. They broke down some of the details in a video with help from ESPN's Scott Van Pelt.

          The university president, Dr. Wallace Loh, told the Washington Post earlier this week that they have raised more than half of the $100 million in private donations they will need to finish the renovations -- scheduled to be completed by the end of 2019. With $51 million in the bank and another $55 million coming from state and university funds, Loh said fundraising efforts will kick into a higher gear in the coming months.

          The school also announced this week that it received an additional $3 million in state-supported funds to jump start orthopedic and neuroscience research facilities inside the building. The plan is to have clinicians and researchers from multiple campuses and disciplines of study housed together to study injuries and provide outpatient care to the community. The new performance center inside the building intends to provide large spaces to study biomechanics, brain injuries and exoskeleton robotics.

          Cole Field House was home to Maryland's basketball teams from 1955 through 2002, when those programs moved down the road to a new facility. It served as a student activity center for a decade-plus before being slated for its current redesign. Construction is underway on the facility. The first phase of the project is expected to include the football-related upgrades, which will make the Terps the final Big Ten program to have an indoor practice field on campus.