WATCH: Hammond brothers tour new UF football facility, opening this summer

On3 imageby:Zach Abolverdi•05/27/22•

ZachAbolverdi

The Florida Gators football team will soon move out of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium into their new digs.

The James W. “Bill” Heavener Football Training Center — UF’s new state-of-the-art, $85 million stand-alone facility — is a couple months away from completion.

Constructed started on the 142,000-square-foot building in June 2020 and will be finished this summer. The opening is set for late July, according to athletic director Scott Stricklin.

Florida football’s official Twitter account shared a video Friday of former UF receivers Frankie Hammond and Josh Hammond touring the new facility.

“To walk around with Josh and see just how much space and all the detail that went into it, it’s just things that you probably don’t think of,” Frankie Hammond said. “They took the time and thought of it, from recovery to nutrition. There’s a whole bunch of little things that I feel we missed when we were there, but now they’re affording it to these kids.”

Frankie played for Florida from 2008-2012 and spent five years in the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs (2013-16) and New York Jets (2017). Josh was with the Gators from 2016-19 and currently plays for the Philadelphia Eagles after two years with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Hammond brothers were back in Gainesville last Saturday and checked out the new facility from Joshua Thompson, director of football operations.

“It’s great, man. The young kids are really going to like it. All the recruits that come through are going to love it. A lot of good things going in that a lot of other colleges don’t have,” Josh Hammond said.

“Definitely a lot of comfort. I think a lot of people aren’t going to leave. They’re going to spend their time in the facility, hanging around their teammates. And ultimately, that’s what you want.”

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