|
The Truth About the Return to Millsaps
Doug Miller, NewOrleansSaints.com
Friday, June 22, 2007 - 2:15 PM
In slightly more than a month, the Saints will descend on Millsaps College for their annual training camp on the intimate college campus in the northern edge of the city of Jackson, Mississippi.
For months there has been speculation regarding the team's return to the school, which Head Coach Sean Payton and Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis often credited throughout the 2006 season as an experience the team greatly benefited from en route to their first ever NFC South title and a foray into the NFL Championship game.
The speculation ended yesterday when both the Saints and the Millsaps officially announced that the Saints would return for what everyone associated with the team and the school hope to be as successful a foundation to build from as proved to be in 2006.
However, throughout the past few months, rumors and speculation, often completely inaccurate and baseless, seeped into media reports and seemingly the public's consciousness. Primarily among the fallacies was the Saints' reported request for Millsaps to construct an indoor practice facility.
"We never, ever asked for an indoor practice facility," said Saints' Senior Vice President/Chief Financial Officer Dennis Lauscha. "That rumor was absurd."
"Major projects, like an indoor practice facility, were never proposed, discussed nor requested," said Brit Katz, Millsaps' Vice President and Dean of Students.
Instead, the Saints and Millsaps engaged in conversations and, ultimately, an agreement that will not only benefit the Saints as long as they elect to return to the 110-year old institution, but will also serve as a catalyst for immediate and long-term capital improvements to the college.
By partnering with entities such as the Mississippi Economic Development office and the local corporate partners the Saints quickly partnered with those willing and eager to see the team return to Millsaps and a partnership was reached.
"From the top of our organization all the way through, we strongly feel that holding training camp at Millsaps provides our football operations an excellent opportunity for success," said Saints' Vice President of Marketing and Business Development Ben Hales. "From a business perspective this is an investment in not only the future of the Saints but also in the future of Millsaps. Clearly the business model is unique in that it is in non-traditional from most models and studies, but at the end of the day, it is a partnership is which everyone benefits."
"From the beginning, it was clear the Saints wanted to be back at Millsaps and we wanted the Saints to be here," Katz said. "We knew it was going to be a challenge to fund the capital improvements needed to maximize the training camp experience for the Saints, the fans and Millsaps. Fortunately, the Saints presented a fundraising plan to us that did not require Millsaps to provide any funding for these capital improvements. The end result provides the Saints with what they need to build a championship team and serve their fans while providing Millsaps with facility improvements that truly benefit the college - all at no expense to Millsaps."
In addition to an undisclosed "rent" that the Saints pay Millsaps for the use of the dorms, facilities and fields for the duration of training camp, the Saints also struck an agreement in which all of the sponsorship and revenue dollars earned through the promotions of the team's stay in Jackson will be returned to the school for capital improvements to the college.
Through the agreement, upgrades such as the permanent installation of air conditioning into the school's gymnasium will be made, while other improvements including upgraded laundry capabilities will serve the school's athletic teams in the future while also helping the Saints' equipment staff better serve the players and staff during the searing Mississippi heat in July and August.
While improvements to the school's gymnasium and laundry facilities will only be noticed by those attending the school, other improvements, such as the upgrade to the athletic field on the lower portion of the campus, coupled with the installation of stairs and walkway will serve not only the Saints, but the fans attending practice, as well.
After the upgrades this year, the annual revenues that the Saints generate for sponsorships for training camp will be saved for future upgrades to the campus and applied when needed.
"The thought is that once we get past these projects, we will have money set aside to upgrade Millsaps as we go along," said Lauscha. "Each year there may be something else that needs to be looked at, such as improvements to dorms, or to offices, classrooms, or video systems.
Lauscha said that the improvements and thoroughfare between the upper and lower field and Payton's desire to work on the lower field benefits the fans that attend the practices because the hill surrounding the field provides a natural amphitheater for those watching the action on the field, which benefits the fans attending the practice sessions.
One may wonder why the team doesn't utilize the upper fields on a more regular basis, however with a natural spring sitting underneath the upper fields the fields usually are constantly moist and not necessarily conducive to hosting the beating nearly 100 men and the myriad of equipment that accompanies conducting a practice.
"It worked out very well because there is a natural theater which works out great for the fans and works out well for the players because it doesn't have the water on it," said Lauscha. "The problem is that it wasn't a full field or really the caliber of a field that a professional team would practice on. It was really a soccer pitch. So we asked them to go in and make it a regulation football field and make some improvements to the hill that leads to and from the field so that it is accommodating to the fans and the football team."
In the end Lauscha said, it was the strong desire of Saints owner Tom Benson and the team's administration, coupled with Millsaps' desire to host the Saints, that served as the impetus in the 'win-win' agreement struck by the two parties.
"After our tremendous experience last year, we knew that we wanted to go back to Millsaps and we believe it is a great experience for fans, as well," said Lauscha. "We are excited to get started."
|