About 37,800 of the stadium's seats will be restored to their original red from a faded pinkUNIV. OF LOUISVILLE
The Univ. of Louisville will use a $1.5M commitment from Zappos.com to "finance the long-deferred maintenance" at Cardinal Stadium that has been a "visible source of frustration" for fans, according to Tim Sullivan of the Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL. In return, Cardinal Stadium's field suites will "carry the name of the online retailer, which opened a store connected to its Louisville fulfillment center in April." About 37,800 of the stadium's seats are "gradually being restored to their original red from faded pink." The project will not be done before the school's Sept. 2 opener against Notre Dame, but has "enough urgency" that AD Vince Tyra "did not want to wait until the offseason." Restoring the seats' color and "adding UV protection was deemed more cost-effective than replacing the seats," which would have cost an estimated $6.5M. An extra 3,000 "bucket-style seats" at Jim Patterson and Ulmer Stadiums also will be "replaced with new slat-back seats" (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 8/23).
NEW DEALS CONTINUE: In Louisville, Danielle Lerner notes the UL athletics department will use Norton Healthcare as its "official health care provider." Norton Sports Health will "provide medical support" for the school's 23 varsity programs. Tyra said that the partnership is a three-year agreement with "options for two additional three-year extensions." UL's previous 20-year deal with KentuckyOne Health "expired last year." Tyra "declined to put a monetary value on the agreement" (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 8/23).
