As football season nears, so, too, does the end of construction to the newly expanded University Stadium.
The expansion and renovation of the stadium, which began in November, is almost complete and includes new end zone seats on the north end and a state-of-the-art video scoreboard, called “LoboVision.” The additional seating increases University Stadium’s capacity to 37,164 seats and connects the east and west stands.
John Fortin, a superintendent for Noel Co., a cement company, said the north end zone seats were finished about a month ago and the construction of the section will be finished in three weeks. Fortin said cement is needed for the north concourse, and concession stands, ticket booths and stairs leading from the parking lot to the north end are not finished yet.
“The construction has been going really well,” he said. “Now we know where the good seats are and the concourse on the top is going to be really nice.”
UNM football players have watched the expansion construction and are impressed with the stadium.
“I think it’s awesome; now it looks like a stadium,” junior tight-end Joseph Fiola said. “It’s great for the team and the fans.”
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
Fiola said the new-look stadium is the main topic in the weight room.
“Everyone is excited about playing in the stadium,” he said. “It’s going to bring more fans and, in turn, help us play better. It’s going to add to our season.”
The players will not be the only ones taking pride in the new additions to the stadium.
Chris Palomino, a worker for Noel and an ex-Lobo who played in 1991 as a walk-on freshman, said he is going to feel a sense of pride when he sees the fans enjoying the structure he and his co-workers helped build.
“It will be a rewarding feeling,” he said. “I think a lot of people will enjoy it. Hopefully, it will bring that feeling of wanting to come out here and watch a football game.”
What fans might enjoy the most is the video monitor, a 21-by-28 foot display, that fits into the 36-by-61 foot scoreboard.
The $1.8 million video scoreboard is manufactured by Daktronics Inc. and is called the Prostar VideoPlus Display System.
Jason Moen, a project manager at Daktronics who is in charge of overseeing the video scoreboard’s construction, said he expects the entire scoreboard to be operational in time for Fan Photo Day on Aug. 18.
“We are working hard to have the scoreboard ready for the event,” he said. “We want to see all the fans’ and players’ excitement when they see the new scoreboard.”
Moen said the six displays that make up the video monitor have been made, tested and approved at the company’s South Dakota factory and are currently at the stadium. He said employees will work during the weekend to get the steel frame and support structure ready for the installation of the six video monitors.
He said he expects the installation to be finished by the middle of next week and the electrical connections to take about another week.
Moen said the advantages the Prostar system has over other video systems is that it uses light-emitting diodes, which allow it to show 68 billion different colors, are seamless from one display to the next and have very good picture quality.
He said the main features LoboVision has are instantaneous instant replays and the ability to show live action and provide text information.
“It brings a lot of impact and excitement to the game,” Moen said. “It is a powerful tool.”
The expansion is the second phase of the stadium renovation. The first phase was finished in October when the northwest corner of the stadium was renovated, adding a new entrance, ticket booths, concession stands and some landscaping. The third phase will be renovating the northeast, southeast and southwest corners of the stadium similar to the northwest corner, which could happen sometime in the future.
Frank Ch†vez, 66, a lifelong Lobo fan, said it is about time that the stadium started getting new features. Ch†vez said he used to watch UNM play in Zimmerman Field and also saw the construction of University Stadium in 1960.
Ch†vez, who is retired, said he has seen the renovation from the beginning and now goes to the stadium three times a week to see the construction.
“It’s nice to see the University being able to improve its athletic facilities,” he said. “It gives us a feeling of keeping up with the sports facilities around the nation.”
