FAYETTEVILLE -- In a few months, people will be able to stop by Arkansas' outdoor track and have their picture taken with an eight-foot bronze statue of John McDonnell, the former coach who led the Razorbacks' men's teams to 40 national championships and 84 conference titles in cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field during his 36-year career.
The McDonnell statue will be part of an outdoor plaza area in the northwest corner of John McDonnell Field -- at the the intersection of Meadow Street and Razorback Road -- being built to honor the Razorbacks' men's and women's national and conference champions, All-Americans and Olympians.
Chris Bucknam, who in 2008 succeeded McDonnell as the Razorbacks' coach, said other tracks around the country have areas honoring coaches and teams, but that it's fitting McDonnell will have a larger-than-life statue.
"Coach Mac should stand above all of them," Bucknam said. "To me, it signifies the coach that he was, the man that he is.
"This is Arkansas, and we win more and do things better. This is an example of that."
McDonnell's statue and the plaza area will be built outside the entrance to the track. Construction will start in a few days.
"One of the things we wanted to do was bring Coach McDonnell outside the stadium so that people can see it any day of the week, and it's not locked up in the facility," Bucknam said. "Our designers are making it so you can walk through this plaza at any time.
"The scope is big, but the meaning is even bigger. It's going to really tell a great story."
Lance Harter, who has been the coach of Arkansas' women's teams since 1990 and joked about being in McDonnell's shadow for nearly 20 years, said no coach deserves an eight-foot statue more than McDonnell.
"He's the icon," Harter said.
The project is going to cost about $750,000, according to an Arkansas spokesman, and will be funded entirely by athletic department funds and private donations.
McDonnell said he's humbled by the idea of a statue in his honor, but that he's more excited about the teams and athletes who will be recognized as part of the display area.
"It's the athletes who deserve the recognition, they're the ones who built our program from such humble beginnings," McDonnell said. "I'd prefer the people who scored the points be honored. I never scored a point."
McDonnell said Arkansas officials are aiming to have a dedication ceremony for the statue and plaza on Nov. 15, the day of the Arkansas-LSU football game at Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
"I'm looking forward to seeing all those names to bring back some fond memories," Harter said. "Now it's going to be highly visible and everybody will have an opportunity to see it. People can come by on their way to football games, basketball games, baseball games and get a chance to see the legacy."
"I think it will be a great inspiration for the future and certainly tell a great story about the past," Bucknam said.
McDonnell said he likes the idea that former Arkansas athletes will be able to bring their families by the plaza and show off their accomplishments.
"The great athletes we've had, a lot of their kids are going to college now," McDonnell said. "They can come back and say to their kids, 'Hey, there's my name, there's my team.' That's the most important thing to me."
Sports on 07/23/2014