Arizona State fundraising for new indoor football practice, tailgating venue
Tailgating at Arizona State football games could soon be a lot cooler.
ASU football is in the fundraising stage for a new indoor practice facility that would be built close to Mountain America Stadium in Tempe and double as a tailgating area for games.
Coach Kenny Dillingham expressed hope that the facility could open in time for the 2027 season.
“We want to get it fundraised here in the next five months to get a shovel in the ground here in the next six months so it’s here two years from today, which is the goal,” head coach Kenny Dillingham said after practice on July 30, via arizonasports.com.
Kenny Dillingham wants new practice facility to be '16th hole of the Waste Management Open'
“We want to create the 16th hole of the Waste Management Open, or as close as we can to it … we just got to fundraise enough money to do it. It’ll be good for us, our football team and it’ll be good for the fans if we can get it done," Dillingham added.
247Sports reported that the Sun Devils are one-third of the way to a $15 million goal in fundraising for the structure, which would be north of Mountain America Stadium.
Arizona State has practiced in the Dickey Dome and at the Kajikawa Practice Fields on the east side of Rural Road for the past 17 seasons, with players having to shuttle to and from practice.
Kenny Dillingham wants new ASU football tailgating venue to be 'experience'
"This is a lifestyle city, this is a city based on fun," Dillingham said, via 247Sports. "No offense to golf, but people don't go to the Waste Management Phoenix Open to watch the golf, they go for experience and the fun and the entertainment. If we have a structure that becomes the best sports bar, slash tailgating event in town, every single week right outside our stadium, I think it could become one of the places to be on Saturday, if it's done right."
Dillingham said, according to arizonasports.com, that the school is looking to $15 million to $20 million for the project, but that would just help with the costs.
"The school will take it from there if we can get to that $15-20 million mark spread throughout 5-7 years, so that’s what we’re shooting for," he said.
Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today.