$1 million to Iowa football

The new football thingie continues to gain steam. Everyone wants to be associated with a winner.

From UI sports info:

IOWA CITY COUPLE MAKE $1 MILLION GIFT TO UI FOOTBALL

Jim and Darlene McCord of Iowa City have made a $1 million gift commitment through the University of Iowa Foundation to support the Hawkeye football program.

The contribution will be used toward the funding of a renovation of the UI's football facilities. It will include expansion and improvements to the Jacobson Athletics Building and improvements to the UI's current indoor practice facility known as "the bubble." In recognition of the McCords' generosity, the UI will name the indoor club level of the Kinnick Press Box the McCord Club.

"We are truly grateful for the continued support from Jim and Darlene McCord," said UI Director of Athletics Gary Barta. "I very much appreciate their support and confidence -- as does Kirk Ferentz, the coaches and our student-athletes."

According to UI Head Football Coach Kirk Ferentz, this gift will help the university significantly enhance its football program's facilities goals.

"The McCords are loyal Hawkeyes, through and through, and their leadership will help ensure a winning future for our program," Ferentz said. "On behalf of all our coaches, student-athletes and Hawkeye fans, I want to say 'thank you' to Jim and Darlene McCord for their generous investment in UI football."

Jim McCord is a UI alumnus who earned a B.S. degree in psychology in 1969, an M.A. degree in counselor education in 1972 and a Ph.D. degree in education in 1974. He is a longtime Hawkeye football fan, and he and his wife, Darlene, wanted to honor this passion by supporting UI football.

"Giving to the UI Department of Athletics has been our most rewarding gift, and it is great fun," said Darlene McCord. "The staff really appreciates everything. We even received personal, handwritten thank-you notes from the coaches and trainers. We were so pleased, we had their notes framed. This has been a wonderful experience, and we look forward to giving again."

The McCords own McCord Research, an Iowa-based corporation that researches and develops high-quality products for wound and skin care. Darlene McCord -- a biochemist with a Ph.D. degree from the University of California at Berkeley who specializes in the chemistry of skin-product formulation -- is the company's senior researcher, and Jim McCord is the director of business development. Prior to this role, Jim McCord was dean at East Los Angeles College and Los Angeles Southwest College.

The McCords also own Pinnaclife Inc., a Coralville-based company that provides health-related nutritional and personal-care products via direct sales.

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Here's our latest update on the new facility, from Iowa City reporter Gregg Hennigan:

The University of Iowa continues to move forward with plans to upgrade the football team's meeting, training and indoor practice facilities, Athletics Director Gary Barta said Wednesday.

Whether Iowa will renovate or build, or do a combination of both, remains to be seen.

Barta told the state Board of Regents the school is working on two plans. One calls for expansion and renovation, the other for construction. He said he'd be at an undetermined regents meeting with more details, including cost estimates.

Iowa got the OK from the regents in 2008 to begin planning for upgrades to the indoor football practice facility, commonly called “the Bubble,” and the Jacobson football building, which is home to office, training and meeting space and locker rooms.

Barta said Iowa has fallen behind what other schools have, a point hammered home by a tour of several campuses last summer, including Penn State, Michigan State and Tennessee. He said he and Coach Kirk Ferentz believe upgrading the football facilities is “critical” to the future of the program.

“We've outgrown many of the spaces … and they've become dated, as well,” he told the regents.

The Bubble is about 25 years old and has a life expectancy of 15 to 30 years.

Barta said renovation would be cheaper, but part of the decision will come down to whether they keep the Bubble or relocate. The nearby University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics has expansion plans that could play a factor in what the football program does.

Barta said no taxpayer money will be used on the project. In December, he said Iowa had funding commitments ranging from $13 million to $15 million. University spokesman Tom Moore said Wednesday the amount remains about the same.