Oklahoma's Gaylord Family Memorial Stadium that opened in '23 "has been turned into a bowl" with a "Topping Out" ceremony held this past Friday ahead of OU's spring game, according to Cliff Brunt of the AP. Though there is "work to be done, the frame of the bowl is in place." OU said that the part of the reconstruction project that "includes new loge boxes and concession areas will be finished" by the start of the '16-17 season. The capacity of 82,112 "won't be affected much, but enclosing the stadium could affect the fan experience." Other work in the project, "including new coaches' offices, a larger strength and conditioning room, new locker rooms, an expanded sports medicine area, a nutrition center and new team meeting rooms are to be completed" by the end of February '17. There has been a "great deal of scrambling for players and staff during the process" (AP, 4/8). In Oklahoma City, Jason Kersey noted the event Friday was a "celebration of the progress made and what is still to come in the massive construction project." The team facilities "will be completed during the next offseason." This is the first phase of an "enormous master plan that was unveiled" in the summer of '14 and is "expected to be completed in three phases." The south end zone project alone "was estimated to cost" $160M. OU AD Joe Castiglione said that the school "still has about 400 to 500 club seats available" (OKLAHOMAN, 4/9).
