John Euliano and University of Central Florida Athletics have announced a gift commitment of $1.5 million to a stadium project that will ‘transform Knights baseball.’
Over a Facebook live stream Monday afternoon, John Euliano, UCF Vice President and Director of Athletics Danny White, along with UCF Baseball head coach Greg Lovelady, made their announcement. The project expects a post-2017 start date, dependent on approval from the UCF President and Board of Trustees, who will likely approve the project unanimously.
“Baseball has always been a passion of mine,” said Euliano. “UCF is world-class academically, and I want to see the university reach the same level of success in athletics. Dealing with failure, making adjustments, leadership and teamwork are just a few.”
“In order to get there, we need first-class facilities for our student-athletes. The game of baseball provides so many life lessons that can help these men in their life after the game ends for them.”
A resident of Winter Springs and longtime baseball fan, Euliano’s daughter currently attends UCF and his son is an alumni of the university.
“I have such an amazing opportunity to help the UCF Baseball team achieve its goals by funding an upgraded baseball facility, and I’m excited to partner with them in this endeavor. We are going to build a championship program, and I’m proud to be a small part of it.” continued Euliano.
A cost of $3 million dollars will bring a new home plate tower, 300-seat premium club section with outdoor seating and indoor amenities, an air-conditioned lounge, food and beverage service, private restrooms, and a dedicated entrance to the area.
Baseball head coach Greg Lovelady affirmed Euliano’s commitment to upgrading player and fan experience.
“When the young men we’re recruiting see the renderings, they’re going to be even more excited to come play baseball at UCF,” Lovelady said. “Great facilities, great support, and great fans all played a part in my desire to coach at UCF. With this one amazing gesture, John Euliano just raised the level of all those areas. I can’t wait to see John Euliano Park open in the very near future.”
Additional charitable funds will be sought by the Golden Knights Foundation to fund the remainder of the project’s estimated cost. Five-year pledge committments will start at $1,000 per season ticket in the new premium club section. UCF Athletics offers a membership reservation for fans available at 407.823.1000.
“This is a big-time, game-changing gift for us,” UCF Vice President and Director of Athletics Danny White said. “It is one of the largest individual gift commitments in the history of our athletic department. When John Euliano Park opens, we’ll have a state-of-the-art facility for our baseball program that will provide great benefits to our student-athletes, our coaches, and our fans. We can’t thank John and his family enough.”
The opening date of John Euliano Park would be prior to the 2018 season on this timeline.
