Galax Steeler
07-22-2010, 04:00 AM
Thursday, July 22, 2010
By Chris Merriman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
While the Steelers have had one of the franchise's most volatile offseasons in recent memory this year, it is business as usual for the Saint Vincent College staff gearing up to play host to the 45th annual Steelers Summer Training Camp, which begins July 30.
It will be Brother Norman W. Hipps' first year as president of Saint Vincent, but he and the school's other administrators are by no means rookies when it comes to housing what is widely regarded as the most fan-friendly training camp in the NFL.
"If you look around and you see the staff here ... these guys have all been working here for the last 10 years," Hipps said at a news conference at the school Wednesday morning. "So it's become a routine for them that they know and look forward to."
There surely will be a buzz at training camp due to the expected appearance of Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who was conditionally suspended six games by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for violating the NFL's personal-conduct policy in April after a Georgia college student's allegation that Roethlisberger sexually assaulted her in a nightclub the month before. But Saint Vincent director of public security Steve Brown said that any changes in training camp security will be made by Steelers security instead, and not by his staff.
"My staff stays the same. We will continue to do what we've always done, and, as needed, we'll respond to any of their calls," Brown said.
Director of facility management Larry Hendrick said he does not expect any drop in attendance this year due to the events of this past spring.
"They've had offseason events before and that usually doesn't affect the fan base that comes out," Hendrick said. "They want to see the Steelers. They want to be close to them, and this is, as Sports Illustrated said, the best camp."
If anything, school administrators expected an above-average turnout as has been the case the past two years. That is as a result of fewer people going on vacation due to the economic recession.
Hendrick, who noted that the Steelers' Super Bowl victory two seasons ago may also have boosted attendance at training camp last year, said about 5,000 fans attend on a given day with as many as 10,000 on a weekend day.
Employees at the Super 8 Motel and the Comfort Inn in Greensburg said it was too early to predict how busy they will be during training camp because most guests make their reservations a day or two in advance.
And no matter how many years the Saint Vincent staff has played host to Steelers training camp, there is always work to be done to prepare for the more than 100,000 total visitors over the course of the summer.
"We're not taking a blasé look at it," said Hendrick, who estimated that it takes a total of more than 1,000 hours to prepare the fields and another 500 to keep them watered during camp. "It's still a challenge to us, it's still exciting."
The Steelers' 2010 preseason training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe opens July 30, with the first session open to the public coming a day later.
All afternoon practices will begin at 2:55 p.m. The campus opens to fans at 1:30 p.m. on days when there is a 2:55 practice. The lone night practice is 7 p.m. Aug. 6 at Latrobe High School. The last public day of open practice is Aug. 18.
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10203/1074560-66.stm#ixzz0uOrAgypv
By Chris Merriman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
While the Steelers have had one of the franchise's most volatile offseasons in recent memory this year, it is business as usual for the Saint Vincent College staff gearing up to play host to the 45th annual Steelers Summer Training Camp, which begins July 30.
It will be Brother Norman W. Hipps' first year as president of Saint Vincent, but he and the school's other administrators are by no means rookies when it comes to housing what is widely regarded as the most fan-friendly training camp in the NFL.
"If you look around and you see the staff here ... these guys have all been working here for the last 10 years," Hipps said at a news conference at the school Wednesday morning. "So it's become a routine for them that they know and look forward to."
There surely will be a buzz at training camp due to the expected appearance of Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who was conditionally suspended six games by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for violating the NFL's personal-conduct policy in April after a Georgia college student's allegation that Roethlisberger sexually assaulted her in a nightclub the month before. But Saint Vincent director of public security Steve Brown said that any changes in training camp security will be made by Steelers security instead, and not by his staff.
"My staff stays the same. We will continue to do what we've always done, and, as needed, we'll respond to any of their calls," Brown said.
Director of facility management Larry Hendrick said he does not expect any drop in attendance this year due to the events of this past spring.
"They've had offseason events before and that usually doesn't affect the fan base that comes out," Hendrick said. "They want to see the Steelers. They want to be close to them, and this is, as Sports Illustrated said, the best camp."
If anything, school administrators expected an above-average turnout as has been the case the past two years. That is as a result of fewer people going on vacation due to the economic recession.
Hendrick, who noted that the Steelers' Super Bowl victory two seasons ago may also have boosted attendance at training camp last year, said about 5,000 fans attend on a given day with as many as 10,000 on a weekend day.
Employees at the Super 8 Motel and the Comfort Inn in Greensburg said it was too early to predict how busy they will be during training camp because most guests make their reservations a day or two in advance.
And no matter how many years the Saint Vincent staff has played host to Steelers training camp, there is always work to be done to prepare for the more than 100,000 total visitors over the course of the summer.
"We're not taking a blasé look at it," said Hendrick, who estimated that it takes a total of more than 1,000 hours to prepare the fields and another 500 to keep them watered during camp. "It's still a challenge to us, it's still exciting."
The Steelers' 2010 preseason training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe opens July 30, with the first session open to the public coming a day later.
All afternoon practices will begin at 2:55 p.m. The campus opens to fans at 1:30 p.m. on days when there is a 2:55 practice. The lone night practice is 7 p.m. Aug. 6 at Latrobe High School. The last public day of open practice is Aug. 18.
Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10203/1074560-66.stm#ixzz0uOrAgypv