ASU’s Harris: Facility upgrades won’t fall behind schedule

When Arizona State athletic director Steve Patterson accepted the same position at Texas, Sun Devils fans immediately had two questions:

Will Patterson take football coach Todd Graham to Texas as Mack Brown’s replacement, and how does this affect ASU’s plan to upgrade Sun Devil Stadium and several of its other athletic facilities?

But those fans now have an answer to at least one of those. Rocky Harris, ASU’s senior associate athletic director, says there’s no reason to worry that the school’s facility upgrades will fall behind schedule while ASU searches for Patterson’s replacement.

“We won’t let that slow down because of Steve’s departure,” Harris told Arizona Sports 620’s Bickley and Marotta Thursday. “He took us down to the red zone, now it’s our turn to punch the ball in. He involved all of us in the process.”

ASU is in the planning stages of a major renovation or reconstruction of Sun Devil Stadium, and the project will begin when upper-level north end zone seating is removed after this season. The Sun Devils’ baseball team is also undergoing a facilities change, and will move to Phoenix Municipal Stadium starting in 2015.

“Some of the smaller things might be put aside for a few weeks,” Harris said. “But there’s no way we’re letting the big things take a side seat.”

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