Louisville football is going places. Or, more specifically, Louisville football isn't going anywhere, but the pieces it has are sticking around and improving. Shortly after announcing his program was pursuing a contract extension with head coach Bobby Petrino, Cardinals athletics director Tom Jurich unveiled a $55 million campaign to improve Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.
"I feel it's important to always stay on the cutting edge in everything we do, and it's critical that we do that with our facilities," Jurich said in a statement Thursday. "This project is a crucial investment in our football program and essential as we move this program forward in the ACC. It's our goal to make Papa John's Cardinal Stadium one of the top facilities in the nation, and we feel we have an extraordinary plan in place that will excite our fan base and give us a chance to recruit some of the top student-athletes in the country."
PJCS opened in 1998 at a 42,000-seat capacity; the stadium presently holds 55,000 seats and will bump to 65,000 upon completion of this project. Included in that expansion: 1,000 club seats, 70 premium boxes and 12 "exclusive" field level suites. The premium boxes will "allow viewing access" to the field and another Dallas Cowboys-style club that will allow ticket holders to watch players walk to and from the field.
The new seats will enclose PJCS and is dubbed, naturally, "Coming Full Circle."
The enclosure also resembles Seattle's Qwest Field.
