Facilities: Several former baseball student-athletes at Middle Tennessee State University have donated money for the school’s new baseball facility set to open in 2008. "Middle Tennessee baseball is a family, and we called everyone together for this one," said Kenneth Victory, who played for the Blue Raiders from 1962 to 1966. "When I played, the baseball field had a backstop and it was open in the outfield. The facility has gotten bigger and better every year, and each team’s field has always seemed like a home. Now it’s like we’re building a new home, and it’s for anyone ever involved with this program." More than one-third of the $4.2 million raised for the stadium project so far has come from private donations by former Middle Tennessee baseball players. Alan Farley, associate athletics director of fund-raising, said like any capital campaign, success is predicated on a number of large gifts, "but the way that former players have responded has really pushed this thing along. We talked to each decade of players to plant that seed, and then they’ve just jumped right into it. It’s especially great to see those from 2000-05 give what they can because those guys haven’t even had time to get established in their careers. But they saw first-hand the passion that coach (Steve Peterson) had for this dream. They lived it, and now they want to make it come true." ... Saint Joseph’s University announced plans for an expansion of Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse and a center for use by men’s and women’s basketball. The basketball center will be adjacent to the fieldhouse and will include new locker rooms, coaches’ offices, meeting areas and academic and study space. The plan also calls for renovations to the existing Recreation Center to house new athletics offices, locker rooms and meeting space for the remaining varsity sports. The Fieldhouse expansion will include a full-service concourse around the perimeter of the arena and an increase in seating capacity. Officials anticipate that men’s and women’s basketball will play one full season off campus during some of the construction. "All of our varsity programs, along with club, recreation and intramural programs, will have the kind of facilities that reflect their status as integral to the campus life experience," said Saint Joseph’s President Timothy Lannon.

Conferences: The Big Ten Conference officially unveiled the logo for its new network, formed in partnership with Fox Cable Networks. The network will launch in August 2007. Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said the announcement of the new network’s logo helps create brand awareness. First announced this summer, the network will broadcast Big Ten athletics events and features 24 hours a day. The conference is majority owner in the endeavor. DIRECTV is the first broadcast entity to deliver the Big Ten Network to subscribers.… The Atlantic Coast Conference will honor 12 former student-athletes at the 2006 Football Legends class at the annual Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game. They are Doug Flutie, Boston College; Gino Torretta, University of Miami (Florida); Jim Ritcher, North Carolina State University; Randy White, University of Maryland, College Park; Michael Dean Perry, Clemson University; Art Gregory, Duke University; William Floyd, Florida State University; Marco Coleman, Georgia Institute of Technology; William Fuller, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; Jim Dombrowski, University of Virginia; Carroll Dale, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; and James McDougald, Wake Forest University.

Miscellaneous: The Georgia State University athletics association debuted its revamped Web site, GeorgiaStateSports.com, powered by a five-year partnership with XOS Technologies, Inc. The revamped site will include more interactive fan services, including e-commerce and auction availability as well as premium video and audio services of games and wireless distribution to e-mails and cell phones. "Our new site will help us to engage fans from the convenience of their own homes and it will offer them more team support opportunities than ever before," said Mary McElroy, Georgia State director of athletics ... University of New Hampshire wide receiver David Ball caught his 51st touchdown pass October 7 in a game against the University of Richmond. The touchdown reception broke the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision career record held by former Mississippi Valley State University wide receiver Jerry Rice … The College of William and Mary announced it will alter its athletics logo to remove the Native American feather imagery, complying with an NCAA policy that prohibits the use of Native American mascots, names and imagery at NCAA championships.