Nebraska AD Troy Dannen gives other facility updates
In addition to the modified plan we learned about for Nebraska’s East and West Stadium, NU athletic director Troy Dannen also gave an update on other facility upgrades.
The big one that is being addressed immediately is NU’s track. Because of the construction of Nebraska’s Go Big Project, the Husker track and field program has not had a stadium to compete in the last two seasons.
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Head coach Justin St. Claire just won his second consecutive men’s out Big Ten title, while the women’s team finished second. He was also named the Big Ten’s track and field coach of the year. However, the negative of the Go Big Project construction is they have not been able to host a track meet in Lincoln for two years. That is being addressed immediately. RFPs have gone out, and construction is expected to begin immediately on permanent seating around the Husker’s new track on Innovation Campus.
Dannen said the facility will have permanent seating for 2,500 and can add more temporary seating down the road. The total cost is expected to be $9 million. The biggest priority moving forward is to have the facility ready to host the Big Ten outdoor championships in 2026.
“That also went out to bid with the idea that it could be phased if the pricing came in at a number that was a surprise. I consider the track to be part of the completion of the Osborne Legacy Complex,” Dannen said. “When we have to relocate a facility to build another, part of that is completion of the relocation.
“I know we might not have had stands there and everything else, but the facility is not meet capable yet. We need to make it meet capable. We got a two-time defending Big Ten champion, and the ’26 Big Ten Championships are here. We got to get this finalized and finished.”
The final steps of transitioning into the Go Big Project are happening now
Over the last several weeks, we’ve seen the football team slowly transition into the new facility.
The locker room, training, and recovery areas were completed this past fall. The weight room officially opened during spring practice in March. And now Matt Rhule and his coaching staff have fully moved into their new office space.
“Football moved over there the week after spring ball,” Dannen said.
“You got a lot of the assistants on the road, so it’s helping. Some are here. You get them moved in while they’re not here.”
The other key pieces are the academic center and training table.
Dannen said the academic center will be transitioned to its new space by the end of the month, while the new training table won’t open until later this summer.
“Academics are the last week of the month. They’ll transition,” Dannen said. “The training table will still serve here for the summer. We’re about to award the provider. The RFP came in. I don’t know that that’s done, done yet, but it might be today. Then they’ll have some ramp-up time.
“I think when the athletes come back for fall camp and fall sports, we’ll start serving out of the new space. We’ll be on a little bit of a limited use here in the summer as we make the transition. We’ll still be in the current space for the summer.”
Backfilling West and North Stadium
With West Stadium now completely vacated, Dannen’s plans for its future upgrades will fit right in.
Dannen announced his plans to upgrade East and West Stadium seating with chairbacks and premium amenities this week. One of those amenities will probably include upgrading the vacated West Stadium space and converting it to an entertainment area on game day. This was always part of the vision former Chancellor Ronnie Green shared in 2019 when the Go Big Project was first announced.
“We have a lot of relocating of people that’s ongoing right now with the movement out into the Osborne Legacy Complex,” Dannen said. “Part of that will be the development staff ticketing. Moving into that academic space right now, which goes hand in hand with providing that to be a donor experience, since that’s where they’ll be housed. You would have to provide different access to that than we have right now.
“That’s part of when you look at program scope for the architects, how do we turn that into something that’s accessible on game day?”
Meanwhile, the former football offices in North Stadium are expected to be taken over by Husker Vision, the radio network, and Nebraka’s social media and creative teams.
The former weight room in North Stadium has already been taken over by Nebraka’s Olympic sports programs.
“I don’t know who gets Matt’s office, we haven’t decided that yet,” Dannen joked.
Dannen also added that upgrading the facilities for the baseball and softball programs around Haymarket Park is another immediate priority for the athletic department. Another is the dated Devaney Center pool used by the Husker women’s swim program.
“It would certainly be on the list, as would baseball softball facilities that are dated and not up to par with what we expect our programs to be,” Dannen said when asked about a new swimming facility. “There’s quite a little bit of capital work out there. One, we just haven’t sat down and really put the list together, let alone start to prioritize it. The track became the priority because of its tie to the Osborne Legacy Complex, and it’s really a completion of that facility.”
