LaVell Edwards Stadium - History and Seating

History and Seating

The stadium opened on the north end of campus in 1964 as Cougar Stadium, replacing a smaller, 5,000-seat stadium of the same name. The capacity of the facility was just under 30,000 with stands on both sides of the playing field. Seating was soon added to make room for 35,000 fans. Temporary bleachers placed at the back of the end zones raised the capacity to 45,000. The stadium was expanded in 1982 to accommodate more than 65,000; permanent concrete stands in the end zones, separated by entryways from the east and west grandstands, were put in place of the temporary bleachers. The playing field was lowered eight feet (2.4 m), and the running track was removed. Following the retirement of legendary head coach LaVell Edwards after the 2000 football season, the stadium was renamed in his honor.

To increase revenue, the stadium was renovated in 2003 to provide more luxury seating, which resulted in a slight reduction of seating capacity to 64,045. The luxury seating was a noticeable addition because the arrangement of blue and white seats in this section spell out BYU in block letters. On August 30, 2008, BYU unveiled a new video board on the north endzone, allowing fans seated in the south endzone to see the instant replays and graphics which previously were shown only on the south board. During the summer of 2010, the capacity of the stadium was further reduced due to some renovations that allowed for more wheelchair accessibility. Currently, a crowd of 63,470 (or more) is considered a sellout at LaVell Edwards Stadium.