UNLV announces Rebel Up [$150 million campaign]

[LocoRebel]

UNLV Athletics Announces 'Rebel Up' Campaign

LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – UNLV Athletics has announced that it is embarking on its first comprehensive capital campaign: "Rebel Up."

With a fundraising goal of $150 million, the campaign is designed to enhance many areas within UNLV Athletics, including the student-athlete experience, provide funding for new facilities, elevate current facilities, and build a stronger endowment program.

In addition to the $1 million donation to UNLV Football from the Las Vegas Raiders Foundation announced last week, UNLV Athletics has recently received the following commitments to help launch the campaign.

$250,000 (anonymous donor)

$200,000 (Aldo Madrigrano Family)

$150,000 (Rebel Football Foundation)

"UNLV Athletics' mission is: Graduate Leaders, Win Championships, and Excel In All That We Do," said Director of Athletics Erick Harper. "This campaign and plan for UNLV will enhance and embolden opportunities for Rebels to succeed across all three areas: academics, competition, and in life. Thank you to those who have already generously committed to contributing to this important initiative."

Rebel Up includes the following to enhance the Student-Athlete Experience:

Academic & Scholarship Support

Will give UNLV student-athletes the opportunity to continue setting academic records and achieve graduation rates never before imagined.

Career Development/Life after Sport (Rebels Go Pro)

Mental Wellness

Sports Nutrition (training table, Grab-N-Go fueling stations)

Sports Science Studio and Research

The Switch Sports Science Studio will provide our Director of Sports Science the opportunity to enhance data collection that will give coaches pre-, post-, and in-game strategies for optimal performance.


Rebel Up includes the following new facilities:

Academics and Athletics Administration Center

Multi-Use Indoor Facility (benefitting all sports)

Softball Clubhouse at Eller Media Softball Stadium

Track & Field Operations Building at Myron Partridge Stadium and Sheila Tarr Smith Field

Rebel Up includes enhancements to the following facilities:

• Cox Pavilion
• Earl E. Wilson Baseball Stadium
• Fertitta Football Complex
• Fertitta Tennis Complex
• Jim Reitz Pool/Buchanan Natatorium
• Lied Athletic Complex
• Mendenhall Center
• Resurfacing Peter Johann Memorial Soccer Game and Practice Fields
• Resurfacing Track at Myron Partridge Stadium
• Thomas & Mack Center

Recent enhancements made as part of the Rebel Up Campaign ($2M+):

• Cox Pavilion In-Arena Lighting
• Thomas & Mack Center In-Arena Lighting
• Football Practice Fields
• Sports Science Research (metrics to optimize student-athlete performance)
• Student-Athlete Nutritional Enhancements (partnership with William F. Harrah College of Hospitality)
• New Track & Field (High Jump, Hammer Cage, Training Hill)
• New Soccer Scoreboard
• New LED Scoreboard at Eller Media Softball Stadium

"This athletics facilities' vision and plan is crucial to the sustained and long-term success for UNLV Athletics," said Harper. "To win at the highest levels, we must add to, enhance, and maintain our facilities to provide the best experience for student-athletes and coaches. We need our alumni, donors, fans and friends to join and help drive the Rebel Up Campaign for sustained Rebel success."

To learn more about this initiative, which is in its conceptual stage, and to contribute, please contact Deputy Director of Athletics for External Mike Ketcham (michael.ketcham@unlv.edu) or Senior Associate Athletics Director for Development and Revenue Generation Patrick Sojka (patrick.sojka@unlv.edu). You can also reach out to the UNLV Rebel Athletic Fund with any questions at 702-895-1533 or rebelathleticfund@unlv.edu.

 

[LocoRebel]

Lofty goal, but an extremely important one for the university. Hopefully something the current administration (athletics and campus at large) can really get off the ground and be transformative for the university and it's programs and student athletes.

 

[Masked_rebel]

If they can pull this kind of money, we probably all but seal a P4 invite... thats a huge drive campaign for $$$

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

If they can pull this kind of money, we probably all but seal a P4 invite... thats a huge drive campaign for $$$

I hope you're right.

It always seemed to be heading towards four 16 team super-conferences. I was wrong on how I thought it would shake down though. Always believed it was the Big 12 that would be absorbed vs the PAC 12.

Anyway, I'd love to see UNLV get into one of them but I'm not overly confident.

I'm thinking MWC/Oregon State/WASU merger of some kind. Lose P5 status but likely be regarded as top G5 conference.

With expanded playoffs might give G5 schools an outside shot of getting in..

 

[bcvegaspt]

Our past Presidents and AD’s (minus Livengood) haven’t been this ambitious. If we fall short by $20m have we really lost anything?

Good for these current leaders. Hopefully we retain both for a while.

 

[WarthogRebel]

Somebody won that $1.7 billion lottery. Maybe he was a Rebel fan.

 

[rebswin2]

I hope you're right.

It always seemed to be heading towards four 16 team super-conferences. I was wrong on how I thought it would shake down though. Always believed it was the Big 12 that would be absorbed vs the PAC 12.

Anyway, I'd love to see UNLV get into one of them but I'm not overly confident.

I'm thinking MWC/Oregon State/WASU merger of some kind. Lose P5 status but likely be regarded as top G5 conference.

With expanded playoffs might give G5 schools an outside shot of getting in..

As schools leave the ACC, the SEC and BIG will get the top tier schools from that conference (Clemson, FSU, UNC, ND, and I think even Stanford) that will leave the ACC and Big12 scrambling to add. I think Oregon St and Wazzu probably end up in the Big12. We are headed to a P2 (BIG & SEC) and then the next two P3&4 which will be whatever you want to call the ACC and Big12 at that point. The BIG and SEC will be home to probably 40 schools.

 

[LVRebel2000]

150 Million is a huge goal. Is that a 1 year goal? Or 5-10 year?

 

[Meister_Rebel]

150 Million is a huge goal. Is that a 1 year goal? Or 5-10 year?

They didn't say. The announcement towards the bottom also says it's in a "conceptual" stage. Not sure what they want to say there either. But, yeah, it is an ambitious goal.

With football looking good early and basketball sounding promising and the way the Medical School was built with donations they might as well take a swing for the stars.

 

[LVRebel2000]

They didn't say. The announcement towards the bottom also says it's in a "conceptual" stage. Not sure what they want to say there either. But, yeah, it is an ambitious goal.

With football looking good early and basketball sounding promising and the way the Medical School was built with donations they might as well take a swing for the stars.

I agree with aiming high. But even with the $1 million from the Raiders, we've still got 149 million to go. Who is the target group that they're going to try to raise this from? Businesses? Alumni? The Las Vegas general population?

 

[Bullmastiff 1]

As schools leave the ACC, the SEC and BIG will get the top tier schools from that conference (Clemson, FSU, UNC, ND, and I think even Stanford) that will leave the ACC and Big12 scrambling to add. I think Oregon St and Wazzu probably end up in the Big12. We are headed to a P2 (BIG & SEC) and then the next two P3&4 which will be whatever you want to call the ACC and Big12 at that point. The BIG and SEC will be home to probably 40 schools.

Truly possible and would suck.

 

[Meister_Rebel]

I agree with aiming high. But even with the $1 million from the Raiders, we've still got 149 million to go. Who is the target group that they're going to try to raise this from? Businesses? Alumni? The Las Vegas general population?

For that kind of money it has to be the wealthy and businesses. Us poor alums in retirement aren't going to get it done.

I like the idea but my only conflict with what seems to me in this general fund raising for specifically athletics is how it will compete with the annual Rebels Give fundraiser each March. I donate each March but I make it to specific women's sports. My plan is to increase it each year but, again I only want to donate to a specific woman's sport. I don't see how to do it under this new capital campaign. They need to provide more details. Until then I'll stick with the Rebels Give fundraiser.

 

[dcut03]

As schools leave the ACC, the SEC and BIG will get the top tier schools from that conference (Clemson, FSU, UNC, ND, and I think even Stanford) that will leave the ACC and Big12 scrambling to add. I think Oregon St and Wazzu probably end up in the Big12. We are headed to a P2 (BIG & SEC) and then the next two P3&4 which will be whatever you want to call the ACC and Big12 at that point. The BIG and SEC will be home to probably 40 schools.

I'm skeptical of this because it would have to make financial sense. It needs to improve the bottom line for everyone in the conference to add schools. 20 school conferences is a lot of mouths to feed. It also cannibalizes success. There will be a lot of internal losses there which reduces excitement.
Unless they truly break free from the NCAA and create their own playoff system with multiple bids. Which I believe is possible. Tuen it into a college NFL type system. But even so im not sure that would create more revenue than what they currently have.

 

[Rod_the_Rebel]

We are also missing hundreds of thousands of alumni to donate - literally - take the University of Michigan for example. They have 540,000

 

[j. spilotro]

We are also missing hundreds of thousands of alumni to donate - literally - take the University of Michigan for example. They have 540,000

Young school with not many grads, very transient school, low loyalty, especially from the past 20+ years of athletic insignificance, most of the “old” money that was there wasn’t even from alumni, they were businessmen before Vegas went from quaint, charming and unique to all out corporate …

Tough times.