Joe Aillet Stadium Press Box/Suites

In 2017, two years after the opening of the Davison Athletics Complex, Louisiana Tech University completed another upgrade at Joe Aillet Stadium with the completion of the new press box and luxury suites on the west side of the stadium.

The new facility – which replaced the original press box built in the late 1960s – combined with additional upgrades to Joe Aillet Stadium came with a price tag of $18.5 million, all coming from private donations. Some of the additional upgrades included LED lighting, a permanent west side ticket booth, renovations to the west side bathrooms and aesthetic improvements to stadium entry points.

The cost of these additions combined with the money spent on construction of the Davison Athletics Complex and installation of new field turf in 2015 meant over $40 million was invested in the facility in a three-year time frame. All of the $40-plus million total was generated through private investment and other non-state revenue sources.

Demolition of the existing press box built in 1968 and sky box built in 1988 began on November 14, 2016 following the final home regular season football game against UTSA. The new facility opened just over nine months later when the Bulldogs hosted Northwestern State.

The project was led by Ruston-based contractor Lincoln Builders while the design team included TBA Studio as well as a sports specific architect firm, Gensler.

The new two-level facility includes luxury suites, press box and all of the booths needed for national television broadcasts, radio broadcasts, and the various game-day components (coaches booths, AD suites, security, scoreboard, public address, instant replay, media rights holder suite, and more).

The facility is approximately 30,000 square feet, more than four times the square footage of the former press box and sky boxes. With 100 percent private funding for the project, Louisiana Tech was able to maximize and focus state resources on academic and research programs, student support and services, and campus operations.

The first floor of the newest facility houses 13 luxury suites plus the Presidential Suite. Each one of the luxury suites holds 20 supporters and includes 12 outdoor seats, indoor lounge furniture, a kitchenette area and a big screen TV. Patrons gain access to these luxury suites through a club area which will be used for catering food and beverage.

The second level of the new construction includes a two-level media work area, two times the square footage of the existing press box (seats 60). The second floor also includes home and visiting AD suites along with a suite for the University's media rights partner (Learfield), and booths for home and visiting coaches, home and visiting radio, national TV, game-day security operations, instant replay, public address and scoreboard operations, as well as a flex booth that can be utilized for scouts or a third radio broadcast.