HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Coach Travis Bush and Dr. Kurt Martinez from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley spoke with ValleyCentral on the latest news from their respective programs.
UTRGV Head Football Coach Travis Bush talked about the recruiting aspect of the program.
“It’s been fun, it’s been busy, a different kind of busy from your normal coaching schedule when you have a team on campus and spring football. A lot of planning, meetings, and all the facilities we have to build right now. On the road recruiting for the first time with half the staff that we have right now. But it’s been good the support and enthusiasm from the Rio Grande Valley has been phenomenal.”
Coach Bush also talked about the football program’s impact on the university and on its culture in drawing people to the area.
“I think, especially here, knowing just what it does for the entire campus community it kind of gives our students that complete campus life with Saturday football games, marching bands in that atmosphere especially in Texas. You can already see the communities rallying around it. Can you picture a Saturday football game two years from now with the barbecue pits going, fans, and bands? It’s going to be exciting. I think it’s going to change not only the university with the Valley.”
The new sports complex, called the Vaquero Performance Center, will be north of the baseball field, it is about 45 acres, and will house all football operations, according to Coach Bush.
“At around 48,000 square feet, if you can envision the size of a football field, everything football will use such as offices, locker rooms, training rooms, and weight rooms have a huge weight room, and really all sports will use that. But the big thing is our own academic center inside that building. Our leadership team and athletic director did a phenomenal job in a lot of the planning phase before we got here but now we’re kind of in detailed meetings with architects of what those rooms are going to look like. Outside the back is going to be our practice facility with two lighted practice fields. So we’re aiming to make it the best we can and one of the tops in the nation.”
One of the latest programs for the university includes the UTRGV Marching Band and Dr. Kurt Martinez, director of the School of Music, talked about how tryouts are going and what the band will add to the new football program.
“It is impressive. UTRGV Marketing Department opened up a website called UTRGV Marching Band where there’s an information forum. The day after it opened, we had like 200 inquiries, so we’re up to like an increase of 350 so there’s a lot of interest. Auditions are planned for the summer and students who submitted an interest through the form will receive an email telling them about the upcoming auditions.”
“I think it is going to add so much excitement to the football games, the halftime show. I can envision the band spreading out in a big V and it’s just going to add so much enthusiasm to the games.”
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