Something of a football renaissance has taken hold in Lawrence, Kansas, as Lance Leipold and his Kansas Jayhawks are 5-0, ranked and hosting ESPN’s College Gameday on campus for the first time ever this weekend. Now ESPN’s Pete Thamel has reported the cherry on top: A massive overhaul to the football stadium.
According to Thamel, the 102-year-old David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium will be getting a facelift that’s expected to run a bill north of $100 million. The football complex — where players spend most of their time practicing, training, recovering and just hanging out — will also be renovated. Construction is set to begin early in 2023, Thamel reported.
Kansas announced the move shortly after Thamel reported the news on Friday morning, tweeting a video narrated by alumni Kevin Harlan along with a link to a website detailing the endeavor, dubbed the “11th and Mississippi Project” in reference to the intersecting streets where the stadium is.
To cover costs, “the project will be funded primarily with private donations, economic development funds, premium seating sales in the stadium, and future development opportunities that will be created on the site,” according to KU.
According to the initial details provided by KU, the Anderson Family Football Complex will be where renovations begin, along with site prep work across the board, in 2023. The various firms hired by KU will consult with Leipold to ensure the new facilities prioritize recruiting and the experience once players are on the team.
“This project will have a profound impact on the future of Kansas Football and the entire community,” Leipold said in the release. “It will specifically impact our current and future football players, who will now have a state-of-the-art facility to train in.