On Saturday morning, campus leaders at the University of Notre Dame broke ground on a new, state-of-the art athletics facility.
The Jack and Kathy Shields Family Hall, set to open in fall 2026, will support up to 150 construction jobs and span approximately 150,000 square feet. Though it will serve as a centerpiece of activity for Notre Dame football on Courtney Lane on the east side of campus, director of athletics Pete Bevacqua made clear that the facility will enhance the student-athlete experience in full.
“It shows our commitment to our football program. But it’s not only going to benefit our football players — it’s going to benefit all our student-athletes on campus. That’s important,” Bevacqua said.
Support for the facility traces back to a group of former Notre Dame football student-athletes, with linebacker Jack Shields at the forefront. Shields, a member of Notre Dame’s class of 1983, joins Pat and Jana Eilers along with Dave and Clare Butler as top contributors to the project. Like Shields, Pat Eilers and Dave Butler also played Notre Dame football.
The upcoming facility will be the latest in a series of enhancements over the past decade for Notre Dame football. It started with the $400 million Campus Crossroads project, which since its completion in 2018 has integrated Notre Dame Stadium with student life. It expanded in 2020 with the Irish Athletics Center, the 111,400-square-foot indoor facility that houses team practices. Now, it continues into the future with the announcement of Shields Family Hall.
“In a short nine years, from the time Campus Crossroads opened to the time this opens, we will have built the best triumvirate of football facilities in America,” athletic director emeritus Jack Swarbrick said. “But, more importantly, we will have done it the Notre Dame way.”
For Bevacqua, developing the new facility in Notre Dame’s likeness requires an understanding of why student-athletes choose the University. He referenced the “forever decision” that comes with a commitment to Notre Dame, connecting the facility’s amenities with the longevity of the student-athlete experience. The building will include a player nutrition area, academic support and media innovation spaces, studios, a meeting room with an auditorium and augmented reality walkthrough room, an expanded locker room, a technologically-driven equipment facility, a sports medicine facility and an enhanced training room.
The new facility projects to benefit the near and long-term future of the Notre Dame football program itself in many ways. Not only will it keep the University on par with the nation’s top college facilities, but it will also allow head coach Marcus Freeman space to put his program-building goals in practice.
“When we talk to our players and student-athletes, we talk about choosing hard,” Freeman said. “With this new football facility, we will be able to not only embrace it but thrive — and do it with a holistic approach.”
Of course, to build that type of culture, players must buy in. Having top facilities can only help in that regard. Just ask sophomore cornerback Benjamin Morrison, who spoke during Saturday morning’s groundbreaking ceremony.
Morrison recalled that, while on a visit to Notre Dame before his commitment, he almost missed out on seeing the aforementioned indoor practice facility. However, just before he left South Bend, he got the chance to check it out. When Morrison looked up and saw the gold monogram shining bright above him on the lofty wall, he knew that he had found the right place.
“Facilities do matter. As one of the best academic and athletic institutions in the country, Notre Dame must be on the cutting edge of everything we do,” Morrison said. “Our facility matters because we, Notre Dame, set the standard.”
Three years later, Morrison operates as one of the premier corners in college football with some of the highest professional prospects Notre Dame has seen in recent years. Freeman understands how the everyday impact of facilities can add up and change the outlook of a recruit or young student-athlete.
"We tell these recruits in our meetings that we are going to give them every possibility to reach their full potential, and this building reflects that,” Freeman stated.
According to Bevacqua, the new facility will open the Guglielmino Athletics Complex up to renovations that will provide added resources to all 26 athletic programs on Notre Dame’s campus. Perhaps most importantly, it lays down an anchor of stability for Bevacqua and the University’s commitment to Freeman and his ability to strengthen the football program.
