BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) -
We're one week away from the season opener next Saturday night in Death Valley. When Tiger fans and visitors make their way to campus, they may notice a few changes to the stadium.
Death Valley has gotten a little paint, as well as this brand new archway on the Nicholson Drive side of the stadium. If drove past today, you saw construction workers hanging ten-foot tall letters across the side of the building that will eventually read "Tiger Stadium."
"It's a great stadium, a great old stadium and we need to take care of it," said Joe Alleva, LSU athletic director. "We're not going to build a new one, so we need to take care of this stadium and that's what we're doing."
Alleva says LSU is a first-class university with a first class athletic program. He says the stadium's makeover is meant to reflect just that. Some fans agree. They say the broken, rusted windows that were above the student entrance across from Mike the Tiger's habitat, were an awful way to introduce fans to Death Valley.
"When people come, that was the first thing that they would see sometimes," said Stella Trepagnier, LSU fan. "It really was not a very good sight. But looking at it now, and all renovations that they're doing on the side and everything, is absolutely wonderful."
The Tiger faithful hope the stadium's new shiny exterior will help fans have a new outlook on this season despite recent Honey Badger headlines.
"It's water under the bridge, and we have to go forward and deal with it," said Trepagnier. "I think we will because everybody that I know is excited about football season."
"A lot of controversy going on. It should be a good year, and a little facelift will make everything look good," said Brian Maurice, LSU senior
There's more for the stadium. Alleva says the stadium expansion project is set to start at the end of this season and be finished in time for the 2014 football season.
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