Contractor selected for NewCath athletic complex that will include field named in honor of former football coach

By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter

During a blessing ceremony at the construction site for the Newport Central Catholic athletic complex on Friday, principal Kenny Collopy announced that the playing field would be named in honor of Bob Schneider, head coach of the high school’s football team for 44 years.

Schneider passed away in 2021, but his wife, Nancy, and son, Dave, were among the people at the ceremony to officially announce the high school’s first on-campus athletic complex for football, soccer and track.

Mrs. Schneider said her husband “would be very honored” by the announcement that recognizes his dedication to the school and the football program.

He retired from coaching with a 345-183-2 record that currently ranks fifth on the state’s career victories list and his teams had a 3-6 record in state championship games. He was also the high school’s athletic director for 35 years and served as assistant principal.

“He was very dedicated, determined to do what he did well and that’s how it all turned out for him,” Mrs. Schneider said.

The athletic complex will be built on a plateau overlooking the entrance road to the school that has been used as a practice field. Collopy said the plateau will be lowered 6-8 feet and two retaining walls will be added to stabilize the property.

The high school is finalizing a contract with Hemmer Construction to build the complex that will include a synthetic turf playing field for football and soccer with lighting. A six-lane track will encircle the field with an area for field events. A building at the main entrance of the complex will include locker rooms, public restrooms, athletic offices and a press box.

Collopy said $8.5 million is currently set aside for the project. That money was raised through the Looking Up Campaign that netted more than $14 million in pledges. The money was also used to eliminate the school’s debt, upgrade infrastructure and build a science learning center.

Another $1.5 million is projected to be raised for future plans to build a field house with an indoor practice area for sports teams and cheerleaders.

“It will provide our students with the facilities they need to excel in their athletic endeavors, serve as a hub for school spirit and pride, and most importantly support our mission of Catholic education,” Collopy said of the project.

The principal said Hemmer Construction was chosen to build the athletic complex because it submitted the lowest bid and had a timeline for completing the project in 13 months.

“Because we are not officially under contract you unfortunately are not going to get to see me put a symbolic shovel in the ground today,” Collopy said at Friday’s ceremony.

Once the contract is finalized, Collopy plans to have a groundbreaking ceremony for students to mark the symbolic beginning of construction.

“I’m inviting 230 plus of my closest teenage friends out of that school building and we’re going to have a BYOS day — bring your own shovel,” he said. “They’re going to  come down here and break ground for us. And I can’t think of no one more deserving to do so.”

Greta Hansbauer is the student chosen to speak at Friday’s ceremony. She’s a junior on the girls soccer and track teams that expect to be practicing and competing at the athletic complex sometime during the 2025-26 school year.

“It is because of the amazing community surrounding NCC, including all of you here today, that this athletic complex is able to be brought to life,” Hansbauer said. “All in all, the building of this athletic complex will have an immeasurable impact on the NewCath community as a whole.”

NewCath is one of five high schools in Campbell County that are making improvements to athletic facilities. The other projects are:

* Brossart adding baseball and softball fields to its athletic complex;
* Dayton constructing synthetic turf field and field house on its campus;
* Fort Thomas renovating Tower Park soccer field and track used by Highlands;
* Bellevue making plans to renovate Leo Gilligan Field and Ben Flora Gym.

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