Three months from opener, here's where things stand for UL football's new stadium project

[RaginCajun77]

The start of the 2025 UL football season is just three months away against Rice on Aug. 30 in the renovated Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium.

And according to UL deputy athletic director Trey Frazier, the stadium project remains on schedule for the big day.

https://www.theadvocate.com/acadiana...aca-featured-2

[Fais do-do]

Can anyone provide details that is not behind a pay wall.

[JMV JustMyView]

Can anyone provide details that is not behind a pay wall.

They are about a month ahead of schedule.

[BBcajun]

Can anyone provide details that is not behind a pay wall.

Three months from opener, here's where things stand for UL football's new stadium project

The start of the 2025 UL football season is just three months away against Rice on Aug. 30 in the renovated Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium.

And according to UL deputy athletic director Trey Frazier, the stadium project remains on schedule for the big day.

“We still feel really good about the timeline and are not having any issues,” Frazier said. “Technically, it’s supposed to be done by the end of the July, which would give us some wiggle room.”

Frazier said he’s heard stories over the years about other facilities where workers are screwing in new seats two days before the first game. There’s no reason to believe anything like that will take place in August.

“It’s getting there,” he said. “They’re putting cabinets in the suites. They’re putting all the seats in the lower bowl right now. In fact, I think they’re about 75% with the chair backs at this point.

“They’re building the bar out in the club and working on all the final floor finishings. When you’re starting to do that and starting to paint, that means you’re getting close to the end.”

The athletic department is halfway through the process of previous season-ticket holders selecting their new seats through an online 3D seating map.

“It’s going really well,” Frazier said. “I’d say over 90% of the appointments have had people logging on and actually selecting their seats. The lower bowl is filling up, and the club is sold out. We’re rocking and rolling.”

Season-ticket holders also can select tailgating and parking spots during that process.

Starting on June 23, the opportunity to become a new season-ticket holder will be available. Single-game tickets will go on sale in August.

As June begins, all 34 suites are sold out, all the club seats are sold out and only three loge boxes remain.

“We were confident we’d sell it out, but it’s happened a little earlier than I anticipated,” Frazier said. “I thought maybe it would take until maybe August. We’ve really been that way since April.”

Frazier said it’s a great sign that the new stadium will provide benefits to the athletic department.

“The town has been excited about the premium experience at the football game, because we just haven’t had it,” he said. “A lot of those sales are either brand-new people or maybe they kind of went away for a little while because of the experience and are coming back, so it’s exciting to see that group reengaged.”

The Aug. 30 game will be the culmination of decades of hoping and planning.

“This is huge,” Frazier said. “It could really transform our fan base. That sounds maybe a little extreme, but it could. We’ve raised $20 million this year through RCAF. It’ll be the second-best year in history behind when Lourdes and LHC and the Myers family made their large contributions to the facility in one year.

“What that tells you is the masses are excited about it and the people involved are all bought in. I’m hoping we get an attendance bump and a season-ticket bump and people have a good time and want to come back.”

Besides the renovated structure itself, Frazier said it will feature other new aspects. Topping that list is the new concession concept.

“The concession experience should be completely different,” Frazier said. “The middle part of the new facility is an open-air, marketplace-style concession setup. It’s going to be more like a grocery store where you go in and get whatever you want and then you check out. It should speed up the process significantly.”

Even walking to a seat will be a new experience for UL fans.

“It’ll be completely graphiced out and exciting and fun, a whole new experience for when you walk into the facility compared to what Cajun Field was previously,” Frazier said.

A parking lot on the east side will be available on a single-game basis. There’s also a reserved ADA lot for season-ticket holders that was first-come, first-serve in the past.

“We’re very excited,” said Frazier, who said plans are being devised on how to unveil the new stadium for the opener. “We want it to be the place to be in Acadiana for the foreseeable future in the fall.”

There will also be a new turf field, primarily to get the logos facing the proper way with the cameras now on the other side of the field.

The next step will be a new scoreboard, but that’s “a $5 million project and we’ve got to raise funds for that. That would be the pearl on top,” Frazier said.

[ColaCajun]

Any updates or news on the East Side expansion?

[cajunref]

Any updates or news on the East Side expansion?

Probably 2027 season at this point.

[CAJUNSby90]

Probably 2027 season at this point.

Are you speculating or have heard from anybody credible regarding this? and no im not trying to be a smarta**

[BeauCajun]

Probably 2027 season at this point.

I can confirm that at the earliest.

[no1cajunfan]

Any updates or news on the East Side expansion?

According to my close in the loop source they stated:
"Renovations to the east side will begin in 2026. The plans call for a new facility just like the new home side (same size and similar design) except it won't have seats. Consisting only of press/coach's boxes, team offices and potentially training facilities. Underneath they will renovate the concession stands". Source continues to say, "new scoreboard will be included in this phase of renovations." From what I've heard the state will be funding this part of the project.

For what's its worth folks.

[CAJUNSby90]

According to my close in the loop source they stated:
"Renovations to the east side will begin in 2026. The plans call for a new facility just like the new home side (same size and similar design) except it won't have seats. Consisting only of press/coach's boxes, team offices and potentially training facilities. Underneath they will renovate the concession stands". Source continues to say, "new scoreboard will be included in this phase of renovations." From what I've heard the state will be funding this part of the project.

For what's its worth folks.

Should look great once this is all completed.