BOISE, Idaho — Boise State is getting ready for a big football season with lots of TV coverage.
The University is putting the finishing touches on the brand-new video board located on the south side of the stadium.
And it's a doozy!
In fact, you need a drone to appreciate the scale of the latest addition to Albertson's Stadium.
"It's the largest video board in the Mountain West Conference, and one of the largest video boards in the country," points out Cody Gougler, Associate Athletic Director for external affairs at BSU. "It makes a statement. About BSU, our community, the state of Idaho, how we support our student athletes, and this is a huge step for us."
The new video board is 120 feet wide by 50 feet tall, dwarfing the video board on the north side of the stadium.
It took close to six months for giant cranes and workers to install the $4.5 million video screen in its new home.
The screen essentially closes off the south end of the stadium, where the game-time noise record is already recorded at 120 decibels, and now we'll expect it to get even louder.
"That's why you see so many false starts that end of the field," explains Gougler. "And so when you add this video board in and how we can encourage and engage and get people on their feet to make noise, it's going to continue to make a difference for the program."
Most football fans will probably see the board operate for the first time during the home opener against Central Florida in September. But it will be tested before then.
"We've already received several requests from the athletes to play Madden out there, as well, so we'll see what we can do," says Gougler.
Once they get the video board fired up, they plan to use it for some possible movie nights and concerts throughout the summer before football season begins.
Gougler says the board was funded by the largest single donation in school history given by Idaho Falls-based company, Melaleuca.
