Academic center finally christened

The 14-month-old student-athlete academic center at the University of Montana, which was left nameless at its groundbreaking in August 2014, picked up a title Friday at a small ceremony on campus.

The facility will now be known as the Eric and Blair Sprunk Student-Athlete Academic Center.

The Sprunks gave the Department of Athletics a $1 million gift in 2014 for facility improvements. They asked to remain anonymous at the time because their son, Cooper, was a freshman on the football team, and they wanted to make sure it wouldn't be uncomfortable for him.

Cooper joined the Griz football team as a walk-on in 2013 and redshirted his first year in the program. He saw action in nine games as a tight end in 2014 and four games as a reserve offensive lineman last season after making a position change.

He has played in all five games this fall, starting the last four at center.

"He has worked hard to earn his role on the team, and we feel it's an appropriate time to reveal our donation. We had a good discussion with Cooper and we included him in our decision," said Sprunk.

The two-story structure, which was paid for by private support, opened for business prior to the start of the 2015 fall semester. The academic center takes up the second level, highlighted by 1,500-square feet of space that can accommodate up to 60 student-athletes.

"Blair and I are proud to be able to make this gift to ensure every athlete at the University of Montana has the tools and resources to succeed in their sport and in the classroom," said Sprunk, a 1986 graduate of UM's School of Business Administration.

"We specifically talked to (Director of Athletics Kent Haslam) about an academic center, because while I love Grizzly Athletics, I was never a student-athlete myself. It was important for us to find a way to make a difference for athletes as it relates to the classroom and not just the playing fields."

Montana's previous academic area was a subterranean space that could hold up to 10 on a first-come, first-seated basis. With the space situated between the weight room and equipment room, and across the hall from the football locker room, open spots were never hard to find.

The new academic center had nearly 14,000 visits during the 2015-16 school year.

The $1 million gift to Grizzly Athletics was only the start for Sprunk, who has worked at Nike since 1993 and has risen to the position of Chief Operating Officer for the global company.

In January, Sprunk and Mark Burnham, a 1984 graduate of UM, each gave $1 million gifts to the university to endow the dean position in the School of Business Administration, a first for Montana.

"My hope is that these gifts can serve as a catalyst for others to consider making larger gifts to the university," said Sprunk.

Sprunk has served on the School of Business Administration Dean's Business Advisory Council and the National Advisory Board for Grizzly Athletics.

University of Montana Athletics

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