Following the completion of its newest residence hall on the north end of Top Taggart Field this fall, Ferris State University now has its eyes on a new facility on the south end of the stadium.

The school has started fundraising to break ground on a new indoor fieldhouse-like athletic facility. Totaling about $61.7 million, the Indoor Athletics Complex project would be completed in multiple phases and will include a multipurpose turf field, indoor track surface, several locker rooms, personnel offices and training spaces. 

“The impact of this facility will be huge for all of our athletes and teams, not just football,” Athletics Director Steve Brockelbank said. “It will also be a huge addition for the whole (Big Rapids) community."

The first phase will be the 134,000-square-foot fieldhouse facility, which will give competition hosting opportunities for indoor track and field meets, cheer and stunt competitions, and practices for other weather-dependent sports. This phase will also address improvements for parking on the west and south sides of the facility. 

Following the fieldhouse, the focus will turn to a 42,000-square-foot support building connected to the fieldhouse. This will house various coaching offices, team meeting rooms, locker rooms, suites and various operation rooms such as ticketing and concessions. Finishing touches on the project include lighting improvements, new turf surfacing and stadium bleacher replacements at Top Taggart Field.

 

^{A south-end view rendering of the planned $61.7 million Indoor Athletics Complex at Top Taggart Field (courtesy of Ferris State University).}

“The footprint of the indoor facility is going to be very important to the life of the university and athletic programs,” President Bill Pink said in a campaign video. “This will be a pride point for our community to engage with and our students to enjoy."

While the university potentially planned to break ground as early as fall 2026, Associate Vice President of Marketing and Communications Dave Murray said groundbreaking will occur once fundraising is secured for Phase 1.

“The plan for this project’s costs to be 100 percent covered by fundraising,” Murray said. “The first phase of the project is projected to cost $30 million. To date, we have raised $689,420 in donations large and small."

Prospective donors will have opportunities for naming rights on both the field level and the concourse level.

The university is currently finishing construction on Stadium Hall, the new residence hall next to Top Taggart Field, and the Jim Crow Museum, which is moving from the FLITE Library into its own standalone building. Both projects are expected to open in fall 2026. 

Bulldog Athletics has won five DII national championships, 150 GLIAC regular season titles and 31 GLIAC tournament trophies since 1972.

For more information on the campaign, visit https://www.ferris.edu/map/indoor-athletics-complex.htm.

_{Rendering photos courtesy of Ferris State University.}

_{Edit made on Wednesday, Mar. 11, at 1:35 p.m. for word clarity regarding groundbreaking.}