Kansas Football Unveils State-of-the-Art Locker Room and Weight Room Renovations
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Anderson Family Football Complex – the operational hub for the Kansas Jayhawks – will soon undergo a significant renovation that will overhaul the program’s existing locker room and weight room.
The project, headed by design firms HNTB and Multistudio, will begin immediately following spring practice for the Jayhawks, with crews set to get to work on Monday, April 10 on both the locker room and weight room. The upgrades to Anderson will be the first in a line of projects that will forever alter the KU Football home at 11th and Mississippi.
The area will be transformed by the university’s gateway project at 11th and Mississippi streets– an incredibly innovative remake of the stadium and surrounding area with mixed-used development that will drive student recruitment and economic development, along with providing Kansas Football with a home that will be at the forefront of facilities nationally.
The improvements to Anderson will be a two-phased revamping. The upgrades to the locker room and weight room, which will instantly enhance the facilities to benefit Coach Lance Leipold’s current team, will serve as Phase I of renovations to Anderson, with more information about Phase II coming soon.
“This is a day that will be remembered as the very first step of the transformational changes that are about to occur at Anderson Family Football Complex and David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. This is another sign of the institution’s commitment to providing the very best resources available for our football program. There is still much work to be done, and there is intense planning and preparation happening behind the scenes. But today is a day of celebration and a true indicator that we are all-in on making Kansas Football an elite program nationally.”
Travis Goff, Director of Athletics
The 8,000-square foot locker room – up from just more than 6,000 — will feature state-of-the-art lockers made by Longhorn Lockers. The locker will feature “super custom” cushioned seats with an embroidered head rest and reclining features that are specially designed for football players.
The lockers will also be equipped with extensive storage space for players, air flow to dry equipment, specific space for shoulder pads, glove hooks that will act as dryers, extra shoe storage and significantly more space for each stall than the team’s previous dimensions. The locker room will be equipped with 124 lockers – up from the current number of 110.
Locker installation will begin July 7 and be complete in time for the start of training camp.
The locker room will have a large “Kansas” script logo prominently integrated into the ceiling. The ceiling will also be equipped with integrated lighting that allows for multiple modes such as “every day” “game day” and “recruiting”.
“I am excited to see this project come together and know it will benefit our current players tremendously. It’s very important to our staff that our current players have the opportunity to benefit from the upgraded facilities, and this will ensure they do in a first-class way. We have taken several important steps to becoming a better football program over the past two years and this is another critical step forward.”
Lance Leipold, Head Coach
The 15,000-square foot weight room will also be a gamechanger for the Jayhawks. The enlarged space will feature state-of-the-art equipment that will be customized to fit the most pressing training needs for the team.
The weight room will be equipped with 18 platform weight racks, up from 12 in the previous weight room. The racks will be customized with height and size dimensions that are the most optimal for Director of Sports Performance Matt Gildersleeve’s training style. Each rack will have pieces of the Kansas Football culture engrained into the racks with different logos, expressions and sayings the program lives by on a daily basis.
There will also be a major investment into sports science in the new weight room with more force plates and 1080Sprint, a portable resistance training and testing device for sprints and change of direction movements. The device uses intelligent variable resistance technology to provide a more controlled resistance. It measures power, force, speed and acceleration with high accuracy.
The weight room will also include two videoboards that will be used to communicate training and culture, along with recruiting presentations. The main weight room area will feature a new wire mesh ceiling with perimeter color-changing LED lighting to provide different elements throughout the day.
“There is no doubt, this will be a top-five weight room in the nation. This is going to be tailored perfectly to our student-athletes that they receive the most optimal training available.”
Matt Gildersleeve, Director of Sports Performance
Future details about more expansive renovations to Anderson Family Football Complex and the broader gateway project at 11th and Mississippi will be released throughout 2023.