Pitch with the pros at Kemper Williams Park in Patterson
October 21, 201552nd State Representative District to choose between 2
October 21, 2015
Fans will hardly be able to recognize the Nicholls State University baseball facility when the 2016 season begins next spring.
University officials held a ceremony before last Saturday’s home football game to break ground on a multi-million dollar renovation project to Ray E. Didier Field – a project that will redo the facility’s press-box, grandstand, batting cages and locker room, among other tweaks.
The estimated price tag for the renovation is “around $5 million,” according to Nicholls officials. The money is a combination of state and private funding. Once completed, Didier Field will become one of the elite ballparks in the Southland Conference, according to Nicholls President Dr. Bruce Murphy, who said at the groundbreaking that it was a great day for Colonels baseball.
Hundreds of fans attended the ceremony, which was also attended by, baseball coaches and players, Athletic Director Rob Bernardi, Nicholls Vice President of University Advancement Dr. Neal Weaver and local Senators Norby Chabert and Jody Amedee.
“This is truly a landmark day,” Murphy said. “This is all about the student-athletes. Athletics is very important to the spirit of the university. It’s important to the other students to have something to rally behind, and it gives us a unique marketing advantage.”
The stadium overhaul is a multi-tiered project that will aim to make just about every aspect of the ballpark better over the next several seasons.
The first phase is already underway and will be complete before the team starts its 2016 season next spring.
In that initial phase, Nicholls will get a new ballpark press-box – something officials have long touted is much-needed, as the previous one was very small and had become outdated.
The old press box has already been removed from the top of the stadium, and the outside wall of the new, elevated press-box is already in place – the first phase of construction.
The new press-box will feature a hospitality suite and a ground-floor concession stand. The box will also have an upgraded sound system – a feature that will enhance the fan’s experience at the park. Once the press-box is built, Nicholls will then redo its lighting structures, which will make the ballpark brighter during night games next season.
The college baseball season begins in mid-February, and barring unexpected weather events or other setbacks, the Colonels should see the benefits of that first phase well before the season.
Chabert is one of several dignitaries who attended the groundbreaking ceremony. Chabert said that the renovation will allow Nicholls to compete with some of the larger universities in Louisiana – something that he said wasn’t always easy for the Colonels to do.
The local senator pointed to the state dollars dedicated to the project as a sign of both he and Louisiana’s commitment to Nicholls athletics.
“For too long, Nicholls had been one of the forgotten schools in the Louisiana system,” Chabert said. “So when I got elected, I knew that it was imperative that we change that.”
Once the 2016 season is completed, the second phase of the stadium renovation project will begin. In that phase, which is expected to start next summer, Nicholls will build a new, state-of-the-art baseball field house. That facility will feature coaches’ offices and a new locker room.
Currently the Colonels coaches have offices in Barker Hall – across the street from the baseball stadium.
In the final phase, Didier Field will also redo the stadium’s entrance, while creating enclosed batting cages connected to the stadium.
Nicholls baseball coach Seth Thibodeaux said the project is huge for his program – something that will help the Colonels compete for championships in the future. Under Thibodeaux, Nicholls has risen from the bottom of the standings to its current position as a team that routinely competes for the Southland Conference Championship.
The coach said the stadium renovation will be a morale boost to Nicholls players, and will also serve as a huge recruiting tool that the team can use to attract top-notch players from around Louisiana and beyond to Thibodaux.
“Our administration is totally committed to being the best, and this just absolutely proves it,” Thibodeaux said. “We’re excited about where we are headed and it just keeps getting better and better. And it’s all because of our great supporters.”
Bernardi agreed. The longtime Colonels athletic official said countless studies show a correlation between top-notch facilities and on-field success. Bernardi pointed to the success that the Colonels women’s basketball team has had since getting a new locker room a few seasons ago. He also pointed to the turnaround that the Nicholls soccer team has enjoyed in recent seasons since receiving its new soccer complex.
Bernardi said he expects something similar to happen with Nicholls baseball.
“Dr. Murphy has laid out the vision of this institution, and that vision is to be the intellectual, economic and cultural heart of the Bayou Region,” Bernardi said. “To be successful in athletics, you need three things – coaching, recruiting and facilities. We have the coaching, we’ve had players drafted into the Major Leagues and now we have the facility.”•
