BYU AD Tom Holmoe Hints at Future Renovations to Lavell Edwards Stadium

BYU AD Tom Holmoe met with the media on Saturday

BYU is officially a member of the Big 12 conference. On Saturday, a day that Utah Governor Spencer Cox officially declared BYU Big 12 Conference Day, BYU athletics celebrated its first day in the Big 12 by hosting a party on campus. Thousands were in attendance, including BYU director of athletics Tom Holmoe. Holmoe met with the media as part of the festivities.

During his media session, Holmoe was asked about facility upgrades as BYU prepares for life in the Big 12. He hinted at the need to renovate Lavell Edwards Stadium. "If you look at the Marriott Center - that was built in 1971," Holmoe said. "We have people come in here and think that was built five or ten years ago because they've done such a good job of keeping it great. It's a great venue. The football stadium, we have a huge advantage, it's a great place to play. But that's a stadium that needs some work."

Holmoe's comments came just a few hours after similar remarks were made by Associate AD Chad Lewis on KSL's Cougar Sports Saturday. In that interview, Lewis joked that the Big 12 hinted at a need to make some updates after touring the stadium. "When the Big 12 came and saw Lavell Edwards Stadium, their response was, 'This is really cool, this is a cute stadium. It's kind of got that 1970's/1980's feel.'" Lewis continued. "We've got a lot to do to improve even our best facilities and that won't come all in one day. It will be measured. It will be when we have the finances and resources to do it."

Holmoe echoed a similar sentiment, stating BYU will be measured in its approach to upgrade facilities. "We have excellent venues," Holmoe said. "But in this day and age in college athletics, it's like keeping up with the Joneses. We won't do that at BYU. It's not [our] style. It's not the manner in which we go about our business."

The timeline for upgrades remains to be seen. Given the remarks by Holmoe and Lewis, however, it's clear that renovations will be coming to Lavell Edwards Stadium in the future. 

Over the last several years, BYU has already made various upgrades to Lavell Edwards Stadium. The video boards, the LED ribbons, and the sound system were upgraded in 2021. After the 2018 season, BYU added sections at the four corners of the stadium that connected the four stadium stands at the mezzanine level. In 2022, BYU added a club for corporate sponsors in between the north and east stands at the mezzanine level.

Lavell Edwards Stadium, which was named Cougar Stadium before 2000, was originally constructed in 1964 with a seating capacity of 45,000. BYU expanded the stadium to 65,000 seating capacity in 1982. Present day, Lavell Edwards Stadium seats 63,470 - the reduction from the 1982 expansion was driven by the additions of luxury club seating and wheelchair seating..

Follow us for future coverage:

Facebook - @CougsDaily

Twitter - @Cougs_Daily and Casey Lundquist at @casey_lundquist

Instagram - @cougs_daily