UWyo Magazine View From the Top

September 2015 | Vol. 17, No. 1


The planned High Altitude Performance Center will support student-athletes in reaching their full potential.

By Andy Chapman

University of Wyoming Head Football Coach Craig Bohl is building something special on the high plains. You’ll be able to see it on the field this fall, when he and the Pokes take on some of the nation’s best. You’ll also be able to see it when Wyoming’s athletic facilities become the envy of some of the nation’s best.

In April 2015, UW unveiled plans for a $44 million renovation and expansion of the Rochelle Athletics Center that will triple the size of the facility. This new addition will be called the High Altitude Performance Center.

“For all our student-athletes, this is going to be huge,” Bohl says. “We’ll have new strength and conditioning space with the expansion. We’ll truly be on the cutting edge as far as our nutrition programs and how we’re training our student-athletes.”

Hired at Wyoming in 2014 after leading North Dakota State to three straight NCAA Football Championship Subdivision titles, Bohl has developed the Wyoming Profile to focus recruiting efforts. He wants individuals who want to earn a meaningful degree and to win the Mountain West Conference.

He also hopes to recruit more Wyoming natives. “We need more representation of Wyoming players,” Bohl says. “That’s a critical component of our program’s success—getting young men from our state. But we’ve got to develop them. It’s not about building a flashy, big building. It’s about creating an environment that’s going to meet the needs of those young men.”

“The current facility wasn’t keeping up with the standard, and we knew we were falling behind,” UW Athletics Director Tom Burman says. “We needed to think more globally.”

Officials hope construction will begin after the 2015 football season. The facility, which will expand to a 126,000-square-foot space, features spaces for academic success, nutrition, strength and conditioning, sports medicine and rehabilitation, and recovery facilities to serve more than 400 student-athletes from all UW Division I sports. The new facility will leverage Laramie’s greatest competitive advantage—physical training at 7,220 feet, which provides an opportunity to condition in a manner other schools can’t duplicate.

The High Altitude Performance Center will be funded by a $24 million private support campaign and a $20 million statematching program. A $3 million leadership gift from Marian Rochelle will help launch the project. The gift will be doubled to $6 million by the state of Wyoming.

“Between changing the culture and expectations of our players and the level of commitment, we’re doing everything we can right now with the resources we have, but frankly, we’re underachieving,” Bohl says. “This new project has resonated with many different constituent groups. There’s a consensus that this is important for our state, which is encouraging.”

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