College Football Teams That Could Benefit from a Facilities Upgrade

National signing day is just a few short weeks away. While prospects around the country sign with different schools for a variety of reasons, facilities have become an area of increased importance in the recruiting pitch. For many of college football's Power Five programs, upgrading facilities is part of an ongoing arms race. 

There are even examples of high-end facilities beyond the Power Five level. In 2011, North Texas, then a Sun Belt program, opened up Apogee Stadium at the cost of a cool $78 million. 

The point being, practically everybody at the Football Bowl Subdivision level is doing something about their facilities, whether it's a practice field or a completely new stadium. In the following slides are FBS programs who are looking to upgrade—be it a stadium or football facility—with the hopes of taking their schools to the next level. Think of it as the so-called missing piece between a program and greater success. 

Colorado

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In fairness to Colorado, the school has already made significant strides in the facilities arms race. This year, the Buffs opened the doors to the new Champions Center, which houses the team's locker room, player's lounge and training facilities. 

Over the years, Colorado has made upgrades and expanded Folsom Field as well. Still, the program is overall behind others in the Pac-12 when it comes to bells and whistles. The school is making up ground, though; just a few years ago, the Buffaloes were in far worse shape when it came to facilities and had zero success trying to remain competitive in their new conference.

But, with new facilities and a coach (Mike MacIntyre) who seemingly has the program on the cusp, better days may be ahead. The frustrating part is that Colorado has been so close to turning a corner under MacIntyre but unable to finish. Overall, the trajectory of Buffs football, from on-field results to facility upgrades, has been positive. It's just been a slow incline. 

Miami (Florida)

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The long-standing narrative on Miami, fair or not, was that it was a program capable of winning at a high level but not willing to take the necessary steps to to do so. As far as facilities go, Miami has chipped away at that perception thanks to the $15 million Schwartz Center holding the team's locker room and weight room, as well as an academic center and training area. 

"Calling it for what it was, we were lacking in facilities, and I think there is still some of that perception out there nationally. There isn't when people come and visit now," Miami athletic director Blake James told Christy Cabrera Chirinos of the Sun-Sentinel last year. 

Still, two glaring issues for the Hurricanes program include the lack of an indoor practice facility and an on-campus stadium. As of August, James said an indoor practice facility was a top priority but would need in the ballpark of $10 to $20 million to make it happen. 

As for an on-campus stadium to replace Sun Life Stadium? Not much movement there. The question now is whether new 'Canes coach Mark Richt can bring The U back to prominence without those benefits. 

Northwestern

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Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald has proven you can win in Evanston; maybe not on a consistent basis, but success is possible. After all, the Wildcats went 10-3 in 2015. 

What could help Northwestern become the Stanford of the Midwest in terms of on-field winning (an ironic question given Northwestern beat Stanford this past season)? New facilities would be a plus. 

Consider the call at least partially answered. After years of reports that a new facility was coming, the school broke ground on the Ryan Fieldhouse in November. The new facility will serve many purposes but will include a full-sized indoor athletic field. 

“These lakefront athletics facilities are an absolute game changer for our football program and our entire department,” Fitzgerald said through the NU website. “Now we will offer state-of-the-art facilities to holistically develop our student-athletes on and off the field in preparation for the rest of their lives. Like so many of the young people here, this is absolutely the complete package.”

The next item on the to-do list is Ryan Field, the 90-year-old stadium that seats just north of 47,000 fans. It's not necessary that Ryan Field gets bigger, but polishing it up is the logical next step.

Temple

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There was a time not all that long ago when Temple was kicked out of the old Big East and struggled to find its place in major college football. Times have obviously changed.

Beginning with the Al Golden era and continuing with current head coach Matt Rhule's tenure, the Owls have not only become competitive again but are playing at a high level. No other game signified that like 24-20 loss to No. 9 Notre Dame in which Temple gave the Irish everything they could handle. 

Naturally, Temple wants to upgrade its facilities and move out of Lincoln Financial Field, which it uses with the Philadelphia Eagles. According to Dan Norton of the Philadelphia Business Journal, "Temple is seriously exploring the construction of its own 35,000-seat, $100 million stadium in North Philadelphia" near campus.

Marc Narducci of the Philadelphia Inquirer added this month that the "executive committee of Temple’s Board of Trustees will conduct a vote on appropriating funds for a stadium architect."

So far, the university and mayor-elect Jim Kenney haven't been on the same page as to how this would work. If Temple can make the stadium happen, though, it would be the next step in growing the program and forming a better home-field atmosphere. 

UAB

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After being eliminated following the 2014 season, UAB football is set to return in 2017. There are significant challenges ahead, though, which include keeping head coach Bill Clark on contract and upgrading the facilities. 

"Concentrating now on football facilities. Very important that we have great football facilities. So we can recruit great talent and we can win and if we win, we can bring people to the stadium," said Hatton Smith, the UAB Athletic Campaign Committee chair, to Alan Collins of WBRC.com. 

Before, UAB played at Legion Field, which was typically beyond description—and not in a good way. Landing in a new stadium, first and foremost, needs to be one of the top priorities when Blazers football returns. How that will be accomplished, though, remains to be seen. But UAB football was on the up and up before shutting down temporarily. New facilities could finally result in some consistency within the program.