Louisville announced Friday a $55 million stadium expansion that will "close the bowl" in the north end zone and add 10,000 seats to 17-year-old Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.
"We are extremely excited to launch this project and I know our fans are thrilled as well," Cardinals athletic director Tom Jurich said in a statement. "We worked extremely hard on this one to assure the timing was right before we moved forward. We feel that we have a plan in place that will excite our fans and continue to advance our program, which has truly gained a national stage with our university's move to the ACC."
Per the Courier-Journal, Cardinals athletic director Tom Jurich first announced the school's plans to boosters at the exclusive "50-Yard Line Dinner" on Thursday night. Jurich said Friday he hoped to have the expansion completed within two years, though there was no firm timetable.
The expansion will bring the stadium's capacity to approximately 65,000 fans and include "1,000 modern club seats, 65 new premium loge level boxes, and 10 exclusive field level suites, while adding 25,000 distinct square feet of space ... The middle of the field level will feature a special entrance for the team surrounded by supporters."
The program's adjacent Howard Schnellenberger Football Complex will also be expanded and updated.
The stadium is one of the newest in major college football, having been opened in 1998. The school submitted the potential $55 million expansion to the state of Kentucky earlier this season as part of the state's budgeting process, the Courier-Journal reported.
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