Boise’s video board will presumably be blue to make it invisible to opponents. (Idaho Statesman/MCT/Getty Images)

By Zac Ellis

Boise State is set to introduce some upgrades to its field and its stadium. Plans are underway to install a new video board at Bronco Stadium, and the field will feature a redesigned logo this season, the Idaho Statesman reports.

The proposed 60-by-33 foot video board will replace the existing structure installed in 2001. On Wednesday, the State Board of Education approved the school’s plans for the $2 million project, which will include room for ads and audio equipment, though a timeline has not yet been provided.

“We are constantly and aggressively looking for ways to enhance the fan experience at Bronco Stadium,” athletic director Mark Coyle said in a statement. “A new video board is a priority for us, and one of the first steps in moving in that direction is gaining approval from the State Board of Education. We appreciate the Board’s support as we move forward.”

A new midfield logo is also set for the Broncos’ trademark blue turf. It will not include the words “Boise State” in the design.

By Zac Ellis

New field design for Wyoming football: http://t.co/M752o1eXto—
Paul Lukas (@UniWatch) May 07, 2013

The Wyoming Cowboys will have a new field to show off this season.

The new rendition of Jonah Field, posted on Twitter by @UniWatch, features snow-capped mountains in the end zones. Visitors to War Memorial Stadium won’t be able to forget the field’s elevation, as the sidelines also read “7220 feet.” Better bring some extra oxygen to those Mountain West matchups.

University administrators are exploring options to expand Notre Dame Stadium. (Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

By Zac Ellis

Notre Dame Stadium could be set for a major facelift. University administrators are “exploring an innovative approach to campus planning that would take advantage of the central location of the football stadium,” the school announced on Thursday.

The plans would call for combining a student center, media center and classroom and conference center into the existing Notre Dame Stadium. “Inspired by the University’s campus master plan, we will study the possibility of accomplishing multiple objectives — namely, preserve the campus’ pedestrian character by taking advantage of a central location for needed facilities, retain the integrity of a legendary stadium, improve the visual attractiveness of the exterior stadium wall, and enhance the game-day experience for our football fans,” Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C., Notre Dame’s president, said in a release.

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An announcement on major renovations to Kyle Field could come as early as Wednesday. (Bob Levey/Getty Images)

By Zac Ellis

Texas A&M’s Kyle Field might soon be among the largest venues in college football. The A&M System Board of Regents is slated to discuss potentially major renovations to Kyle Field at its meeting, and a decision could come as early as Wednesday, according to KBTX in College Station. The school has tentatively scheduled a press conference for 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday.

Reports put the stadium’s capacity at approximately 103,000 under the proposed renovations, which would make Kyle Field the SEC’s largest stadium, surpassing Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium (102,455). The Aggies’ home would rank as the third-largest stadium in the country, behind only Penn State’s Beaver Stadium (106,572) and Michigan’s Michigan Stadium (109,901).

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Can you spot the stadium in this photo? (HoustonFootballStadium.com)

By Holly Anderson

The Houston Cougars’ football stadium is currently a big pile of concrete scheduled to be operational in time for the 2014 season. Houston has seven home games scheduled for 2013, four of which will be played in Reliant Stadium, three of which the Texans aren’t accommodating. That leaves the Cougars … where?

Working with the Houston Texans and Reliant Stadium, we have finalized the logistics of four games and have confirmed they will be played in Reliant Stadium – Aug. 30 vs. Southern, Sept. 21 vs. Rice, Oct. 19 vs. BYU and Oct. 31 vs. USF.

We continue to work around the clock with Reliant Stadium, the NFL and other entities to finalize the location for our three remaining home games – Oct. 12 vs. Memphis, Nov. 23 vs. Cincinnati and Nov. 29 vs. SMU.

Venue options abound in the area. In addition to the Cougars, Houston is home to the MLS’ Dynamo and the Rice Owls, both of which could be potential replacement home game sites, a UH spokesman said. But where would be the fun in any of that, really? Our suggestions for the Cougars’ dates with Memphis, Cincinnati and SMU:

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The Cardinal applauds the possibility of a Louisville-Notre Dame game in 2014. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

By Zac Ellis

Right on the heels of Thursday’s news that Notre Dame and NBC have extended their television partnership through the 2025 season, reports have surfaced surrounding a potential big-time opponent for the Fighting Irish in 2014.

According to Brian Hamilton of the Chicago Tribune, Notre Dame is set to face off against Louisville during the 2014 season.

And, talking down-the-line schedules, #NBC exec Jon Miller mentioned that #NotreDame will play #Louisville in yet-to-be-released 2014 slate.

— Brian Hamilton (@ChiTribHamilton) April 18, 2013

Louisville and Notre Dame are each coming off successful 2012 campaigns. The Irish reached the BCS national championship game for the first time since 1988, while the Cardinals upset heavily favored Florida in the Sugar Bowl. If both programs stay the course, their reported 2014 meeting could shape up as a Top 25 clash.

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Anything that makes a more pleasing environment for Ralphie is OK by us. (AP)

For our third stadium-related post of the day (February, y’all), take a look at the $170 million plan Colorado is proposing for various athletic facilities upgrades, including several football-related moves. The projects include a new academic center located in the stadium (“away from the distractions of the Dal Ward Athletic Center,” which, OK), an expansion to the Athletic Center itself, an indoor practice facility adjoining existing outdoor practice fields and in-stadium improvements. Proposed funding sources for the undertaking are also multifaceted:

CU is challenging donors to raise $50 million toward the project and will begin construction when that figure is met by donations. No tuition, student fees or state funding would be used to fund the project. It will be paid for entirely through private fundraising and money the athletic department earns through television contracts and future revenue from the Pac-12 Network.

Finally, our favorite improvement task: “Folsom Field’s east stands will be supported against the shifting ground beneath it,” which sounds like a good idea.

‘Tis the season for stadium news, and while we’re on the topic, Steven Godfrey has a point to consider:

I don't like the new Kyle Field renderings. It just loses that homey air of "post apocalyptic gang fight container."—
Steven Godfrey (@38Godfrey) February 20, 2013

That's what I love about Kyle Field now – it looks like 60 percent of a former stadium, just the parts that survived a nuclear bomb.—
Steven Godfrey (@38Godfrey) February 20, 2013

"Scariness" is an ignored aesthetic in stadium design. LSU looks like a patchwork concrete Voltron from hell, and we all love that place.—
Steven Godfrey (@38Godfrey) February 20, 2013

He’s not wrong. We have never felt more welcomed at a sporting event than when we pulled out a chair at Legion Field to discover a four-inch bolt, origins unknown, already occupying our seat. The spice of possible structural doom can liven up even the most pedestrian of games.

Cal mascot Oski's knowing smirk warns against hubris. (CSM)

We visited Cal once for a football game in the waning years of Memorial Stadium’s usefulness and safety, and were not overfond of the facilities there (nobody likes splinters they can feel through a sundress). So as fans of excellence in football, we’re very pleased to hear the renovations undertaken the year before last are projected to be far enough along to kick off the 2012 season without interference. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that “finishing work will continue throughout the 2012 football season,” but all seems to be going swimmingly. Right up until the point where school administrators prove they have never seen a movie in their lives and don’t understand what it means to tempt fate. 

“There’s nothing aside from a catastrophic event that would prevent us from having a game Sept. 1,” assistant athletic director Bob Milano Jr. said.

“Barring some kind of unforeseen natural disaster, we absolutely will be playing football in renovated Memorial Stadium on Sept. 1, 2012, against Nevada,” [athletic director Sandy Barbour said.

This is campers going off to investigate a strange noise in the woods alone at night. This is a nubile young blonde sneaking into an abandoned insane asylum after dark for a sorority dare. This is 2012, and it would behoove us as a species to be more careful with our words.

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