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Building Up

June 1, 2017

Athletics facilities get boost in massive campus rebuilding project

Years before Liberty University requested a waiver from the NCAA to move its football program to the top level, the university began a near $1 billion campus transformation. The massive building project — one of the most aggressive of any university in the country — would include a number of state-of-the-art academic buildings and world-class athletics facilities.

As Liberty gradually grew from a small college of 154 students in 1971 into the nation’s fifth largest university and the largest Christian university in the world (with over 110,000 in total student enrollment), leaders began planning for adequate infrastructure to support the growth. The commitment by President Jerry Falwell and Liberty’s leadership team to transform the campus aided in the NCAA’s decision to grant the waiver.

The first step in elevating Liberty’s NCAA Division I athletics programs began in 2010 with renovations to Williams Stadium, home of Flames Football. The $16 million renovation included expanded seating and a 5-story tower. For six out of the last seven years, Liberty was ranked one of the top 10 FCS programs in the country in attendance and drew more than 16,500 fans per game during the seven-year span.

Following Falwell’s announcement in 2011 that Liberty would begin an FBS feasibility study, nearly every Liberty athletics facility has been renovated, and several new facilities have been constructed. This summer, crews will be putting the finishing touches on the Indoor Football Practice Facility, which will give the football team a full-size practice field with a 70-foot ceiling clearance.

By the fall, Liberty Athletics will see the addition of two more new facilities. The Academic and Performance Center will open its doors for the return of Liberty’s student-athletes in August. The 60,000-square-foot facility will provide a centralized area for their academic pursuits, as well as state-of-the-art strength and conditioning, nutrition, and rehabilitation areas.

The new Liberty Natatorium will open in time for the 2017-18 swimming & diving season. The 75,000-square-foot facility will feature an eight-lane, 50-meter pool with a bulkhead and a separate 17-foot-deep diving well. Liberty Natatorium and the adjoining Liberty Indoor Track Complex will share a weight room and training room.

While the campus has changed dramatically, Liberty’s mission of Training Champions for Christ — in the classroom, on the court, and on the field — never will.

Liberty Athletics construction projects (since 2010)


Liberty Baseball Stadium and Kamphuis Field at Liberty Softball Stadium were both featured this year on NCAA.com’s “7 Must-See Stadiums” lists for each sport. Liberty University was the only school in the nation to have two stadiums recognized.

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