ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - Back in November 2023, the University of Missouri announced plans to renovate North End Zone Concourse at Memorial Stadium with a budget set to be presented to the school's board in April 2024.
Now one donor is helping out the school with the renovations with a very kind and generous gift.
On Monday, the school announced the athletic program has received a historic $62 million donation from an anonymous donor, which marks the largest donation the athletic program has ever received.
The school says $50 million will got to help the Memorial Stadium Improvements project to modernize Mizzou Football's home stadium, including the redevelopment of the North Concourse and other stadium upgrades.
$12 million of it will go to the Tiger Fund program -- a charitable program through the Tiger Scholarship Fund that helps the athletic program with their NIL efforts.
"This extraordinary commitment is a major step toward fulfilling our vision to transform Memorial Stadium and create the best college football game-day atmosphere in the country," said Mizzou Athletic Director Desiree Reed-Francois. "Our pivotal stadium project is not possible without our donor, whose passion for Mizzou's success, coupled with humility, faith and generosity, are unparalleled."
Mizzou announced plans to renovate the stadium in November 2023, and it will be the second renovation the school has made on Memorial Stadium over the last couple years. Most recently, the school renovated the stadium's South End Zone, with addition of the South End Zone complex in 2019.
The new complex, which costed $98 million at the time, included new team and staff locker rooms, an enhanced sports medicine facility featuring a Hydrotherapy area with recovery pools, Hyroworx and lap pools, a weight room twice the size of the one at MATC, nutrition oasis and equipment room, as well as team and position meeting rooms, and coaches' offices.
Tiger fans will continue to see new changes to the stadium starting next season, as Memorial Stadium will have a new expanded north videoboard with an upgraded sound system.
Mizzou says that despite the renovations, the historic Rock M behind the north end zone will be preserved in its traditional place.
Plans for the full project and budget will be presented to the board by its April 18, 2024 meeting.