Add as a preferred source on Google

UMass Amherst: McGuirk Alumni Stadium (Expansion)

  • 05/01/16
UMass Amherst: McGuirk Alumni Stadium (Expansion)

PHOTOS © PETER VANDERWARKER

Designed in the early 1960s by Gordon Bunshaft of SOM, the McGuirk Alumni Stadium at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has been home to Minutemen Football for more than 60 years. Completed in 2014 by Perkins+Will’s Boston office, in collaboration with HOK, the Football Performance Center and Press Box support the team’s transition from the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision to the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and an enhanced game day experience.

The Football Performance Center has become the new face of the stadium, allowing approaching students, players and fans to see into and through the building to the stadium. Upon entering the lobby, visitors, fans, players and coaches are immersed in the rich history, traditions and successes of Minutemen Football. Overlooking the field from the north end zone, the upper floor includes a 120-seat auditorium, player’s lounge, hall of fame, multipurpose function room, reception area and football team administration area. The multipurpose function room, with expansive views of the field and stadium, opens up to an entertainment terrace for an enhanced game-day experience for fans and members of the Grid Iron Club.

The building is designed to be flexible and efficient to maximize the time and energy of players and coaches. The ground floor, or “players’ floor,” includes a state-of-the-art strength and conditioning center, sports medicine and training suite, team and coach locker rooms and equipment storage.

The new press box replaces the original facility built in 1964. The new facility includes a president’s suite, athletic director suite, home team and visiting team suites, areas for TV and radio talent, game day operations, coaches’ booths, instant replay and a 50-seat working press area.

The project has transformed and revitalized the original 1960s McGuirk Alumni Stadium and surrounding campus open space to create a vibrant and active area for campus life and intercollegiate athletics.

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • classroom with crystal ball on top of a desk

    Call for Opinions: Spaces4Learning 2026 Predictions for Educational Facilities

    As 2025 winds to a close, the Spaces4Learning staff is asking its readers—school administrators, architects, engineers, facilities managers, builders, superintendents, designers, vendors, and more—to send us their predictions for educational facilities in 2026.

  • Preparing for the Next Era of Healthcare Education, Innovation

    Across the country, public universities and community colleges are accelerating investments in healthcare education facilities as part of a broader strategy to address workforce shortages, modernize outdated infrastructure, and expand clinical training capacity. These projects, which are often located at the center of campus health and science districts, are no longer limited to traditional classrooms.

  • Geometric abstract school illustration

    How Design Shapes Learning and Success

    Can the color of a wall, the curve of a chair, or the hum of fluorescent lights really affect how a student learns? More schools are beginning to think so.

  • Los Angeles City College Breaks Ground on New Administration, Workforce Building

    Los Angeles City College (LACC) in Los Angeles, Calif., recently broke ground on a new $72-million administrative facility, according to a news release. The Cesar Chavez Administration and Workforce Building will stand four stories, cover 67,230 square feet, and play home to a wide variety of the school’s educational and administrative services.

Digital Edition