Last Friday, the St. Peter's Prep football team moved into the brand new, 15,000-square-foot Perkins Athletic Center.
The brand new $5.25 million William Perkins Athletic Center at St. Peter's Prep hadn’t even been seen by the public yet, but football coach and athletic director Rich Hansen kept getting messages from former players with the common theme: "We can't wait to come back."
That's because photos had been shared around the St. Peter's Prep community of the new location athletes can call home. The new 15,000-square-foot building is maroon and gray on the outside, with Saint Peter's Preparatory School across the top.
On the inside, the weight room is massive, with new equipment. Photos of past athletes and past champions adorn the walls. Hansen's office peers down over the practice field.
Guys like Notre Dame quarterback Brandon Wimbush, Alabama cornerback Minkah Fitzpatrick and several others all reached out to their former coach. The hashtag #PrepForLife has been seen all over Twitter and Instagram.
St. Peter's Prep new facility. We alums are more than proud. #Prepforlife pic.twitter.com/7b2FQ3Ygg3
— Brandon Wimbush (@WimbushB12) September 23, 2016
So last Friday afternoon, when the Marauders’ football team finally moved into their new digs, you better believe the veteran coach was smiling from ear to ear while walking around the nearly-finished product for the first time.
And as you can see from the photo gallery above, so were the current football players.
For months, the No. 1 Marauders (3-0) have been without a true place to call home. Players would walk back and forth from the main campus on Grand St. in Jersey City to the practice field located about three blocks away. Guys would get dressed on the field sometimes, Hansen said.
“I give my staff and my football team so much credit because the transition to this wasn’t convenient,” the veteran coach said. “We were in an antiquated locker situation through this all. It was difficult. Meeting time was difficult and pregame was difficult, which was out of character for us. Now we can get comfortable and work more cohesively with this facility.”
PLUS: Meet the starters, an inside look at St. Peter's Prep
The new facility features brand new locker rooms with showers, multiple conference rooms, a video room to break down game film and much more. This isn’t all about the football team, though. This brand new complex is benefitting many of the programs at the school.
“Wrestling now has a class-A facility, as does lacrosse,” Hansen said. “Our baseball team will have indoor cages and be able to call this home. Rugby will be able to stake a claim to lockers and hopefully practice here. Soccer will have a place to go at halftime now if it rains here. Coaches have meeting rooms and video equipment. This is huge for everyone.”
Hansen made it clear that the new athletic center doesn’t get done without the help of 1986 SPP alum William “Guy” Perkins III. The former Marauder donated $1.5 million toward the total cost. It’s something the entire Marauder community is thankful for.
“It’s great to have the building, but it’s awesome to have Guy Perkins’ name on it,” Hansen said. “(He’s) A Jersey City, African American football player who has been through a lot in his life and persevered. He’s very successful and he credits a lot of it to Prep and playing football. It’s important that the kids appreciate him and what he’s done. This is something that benefits all our guys, both past and present.”
To check out the Perkins Athletic Facility for yourself, check out the photo gallery above.
Braulio Perez may be reached at bperez@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BraulioEPerez.