Univ. Of Illinois Taps Daktronics For New Stadium Video Displays, Sound System

The Univ. of Illinois yesterday asked Daktronics to design, manufacture and install a new video display and sound system at its Memorial Stadium football venue. This includes a full design-build aspect for the entire south end zone structure from the Memorial Stadium lettering to the columns framing the main video display. The new HD video display will measure 36 feet by 96 feet, and can be divided into separate windows. A new supplemental ribbon display will be installed below the football scoreboard that will measure over 50 feet wide. In addition, two displays will be installed with one in the southeast corner and one in the southwest corner. Each auxiliary video display will measure approximately 10 feet by nearly 17 feet (Illinois). ESPN.com’s Brian Bennett noted the new videoboard will be “four times larger than the current one.” Workers began “dismounting the current scoreboards on Monday,” and the new sound system is “scheduled to be ready by this summer” (ESPN.com, 1/30).

THE CATS' MEOW: Univ. of Kentucky Exec VP/Finance & Administration Eric Monday on said the school’s renovated football facilities “will cost $110 million, which will be paid off by UK athletics in 30 years at $6.6 million a year.” School officials said “programming and internal planning” is underway. They added that “pending legislative approval, the athletics department plans to seek final approval for the renovations in March.” Monday said that after “that is done, a design team will begin the work” that will include “16-20 private suites, new home team facilities, 2,000 club seats, concession, restroom and security upgrades, a new team store, press facilities and a full-service kitchen.” The project is “to be completed in the fall of 2015 or early spring of 2016” (UKFOOTBALL.BLOGINKY.com, 1/29).