Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, NE is one of college football's most iconic venues, and next fall will mark the 100th season that it has hosted games.
The Huskers announced today that next fall will also mark the beginning of a new era for the stadium as significant renovations are set to take place over the next several years.
“One hundred years ago, Nebraskans came together to celebrate the first game at Memorial Stadium – the start of what would become a century’s worth of memories for students, alumni, fans and families all across our state. Now our fans have an opportunity to come together again to ensure that we can make memories for another century. After 100 years, the reality is our stadium needs significant modernization," athletic director Trev Alberts shared in his statement.
“A project of this scale can’t happen without some degree of disruption, but we ask our fans to give us grace as we work through our ambitious plans. We could not be more excited to bring this proposal to the Board of Regents and share our vision with Nebraskans for making Memorial Stadium the home of one of the best fan experiences in college athletics.”
The renovations are set to cost an estimated $450 million, with $225 million coming from private donations.
Memorial Stadium has undergone some renovations here and there dating back to the 1960s, but one of the areas that has remained untouched is the south end of the stadium. The latest plans call for a complete removal and replacement of the south stadium, making it unavailable to fans for at least the entire 2025 season, and quite possible the 2026 season as well.
Included in those renovations are a new seating bowl, loading dock area renovations, new restrooms and concessions, and "vertical transportation opportunities" for fans.
The areas on the east and west side of the stadium will get new restrooms, concessions, and chair back seating while the north stadium will be renovated to expand the existing sports performance areas to be used by all other sports outside of football.
With all the changes outlined, the seating inside Memorial Stadium will undergo a reduction, going from room for 90,000 fans to room for 80,000.
For fans, they will get a refurbished menu at concessions, and will benefit from the field level concourse being connected 360 degrees, while the main level concourse will be connected 270 degrees around the stadium.
The renovations currently have a completion date goal of July 2026, and are projected to start in February.
Alberts is set to speak to the media later this morning to discuss further details on the project.